


Downworlder Dads

by soufflegirl123



Series: Downworlder Dads [1]
Category: Shadowhunters (TV), The Shadowhunter Chronicles - All Media Types, The Shadowhunter Chronicles - Cassandra Clare
Genre: Alec became a stepdad without really noticing, Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Asexual Character, Asexual Raphael Santiago, Character Death Fix, Downworlder Dad Magnus Bane, Father-Son Relationship, Fix-It of Sorts, Gen, Hurt/Comfort, M/M, Magnus is only mentioned in the first two chapters, This is me picking which parts of canon I like and which I don't, definite book spoilers in that I take part of the book canon and totally change it, tv spoilers if you're not caught up yet but also not really
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-12-15
Updated: 2018-03-23
Packaged: 2019-02-15 02:07:23
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 14
Words: 23,868
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13020972
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/soufflegirl123/pseuds/soufflegirl123
Summary: Alec had planned on spending a normal day at home, at least as normal as it got when Magnus was out of town for a few days. Then he found Raphael.This is just some nice whump and fluff for all of us that were wanting more of the Magnus is Raphael's Papa plot.





	1. Look Who's Still Undead

**Author's Note:**

> Weird TV/Book hybrid verse. TV Show canon to a point, a few things taken from book canon (such as the biggest Raphael spoiler…if you read the books you know) The only physical appearances commented on are that Raphael looking 15 (such as in the book canon), and Magnus looking mid-thirties (like Harry Shum Jr) rather than 19 (because that just doesn’t suit the plot and being 19 for eternity would suck. Alec’s eye color is never mentioned nor is his height. No character deaths. Only supposed character deaths (and those are brief).  
> Also, there is mention of vomiting in the first chapter, but it is not described graphically. There is also vague description of injuries.

With Magnus out of realm on business for the week and no way to contact him, Alec had thrown himself into his work at the institute. Not only that, but he had been eating nearly every meal at the institute and volunteering for as many extra duties as he could fit into his schedule. He was not pining, no matter what Jace said even if he was the first to volunteer to go out when they had received an alert about an attack on a mundane. Witnesses were claiming it had been a wild dog, but the victim had insisted it was a wolf. The shadowhunters assumed werewolf and prepared for a typical patrol looking for any newly turned werewolves in the area. It was supposed to be simple, ordinary even. After investigating, Alec had found the culprit was indeed a newly turned werewolf. He tracked him down, kept him from harming any more mundanes, and then waited with him until he changed back. After all that, he had calmed the boy down while waiting for Luke to arrive to take the newbie under his wing…or um…paw?…something like that. Anyway, it was absolutely the new normal with Alec as head of the institute. 

With the situation handled and wanting to prove that he wasn't pining, Alec had called in the situation to the institute and told his siblings he was sleeping at his own place that night but would see them later in the day for lunch. He had nearly reached his and Magnus's apartment when he'd heard another commotion and found another boy in an alley being attacked by a demon. He didn't hesitate before jumping in to handle things. It hadn’t even been a difficult fight. In fact, he had actually enjoyed having a bit of a workout, but when after defeating the demon, he had turned to check on the boy, he had nearly had a heart attack at the sight that greeted him. 

“Raphael?” There he was in the flesh: too pale. too bloody, and barely conscious.

“Alec?” The word was whispered with such a mixture of disbelief and hope that it had Alec jumping into action.

“I thought you were dead.”

Raphael had chuckled tiredly and leaned back against the brick wall. “Am I not?” he'd asked deliriously before passing out. Alec had been left to get him to safety without any explanation for how he was suddenly back, which was how he currently found himself trying wrangle the apartment door open without dropping the vampire in the process.

“We’re home. Just have to get inside the door,” he promised when Raphael grunted in protest at all the movement. Magnus was going to be shocked as soon as he returned from his trip. Of all the weeks for him to be out of reach. 

The wards let them in easily which only confirmed that the person he was holding was the real deal, and Alec set to work. He could never have imagined that on an everyday kind of assignment, he would find someone they had long thought to be dead-er well-deader than undead. Raphael stirred slightly as Alec placed him on the sofa. He looked the same as the day he had died, still too young and still vampiric. However, he also looked thinner and exhausted. There were new scars on him which spoke of recent violence. Overall, he looked as though he had kept fighting the war long after they had considered it finished, which given how long he had been missing, was a definite possibility.

Alec quickly scanned Raphael for any sign of serious injuries while waiting for the other to regain consciousness. There weren’t many injuries other than the recent looking scars and dried blood on his skin and on what Alec hesitated to call clothing, but with his vampire healing, it was impossible to tell what damage could have been done to him during his time away. Alec was certain that Magnus would be equal parts furious and relieved when he came back and found Raphael resting in their apartment, which he would be doing because Alec had no intentions of letting him leave any time soon.

When he was satisfied that he had done all that he could do for any injuries, he moved on to checking for other supplies. Luckily Magnus had yet to fully break his habit of keeping blood on hand for when any vampiric friends dropped in for a visit though they seldom seemed to need it anymore. He had a vague idea of how to prepare it. Magnus typically did it with a snap of the fingers and some magic, but Alec had watched Simon help himself to the supply in the past. He prepared the blood as best as he could then sat back down next to his charge.

What a difference a few years made that Alec could suddenly easily see how young Raphael had been when he had been turned. He wondered if people would one day look at him like that when he stopped aging after his twenty-eighth birthday as he and Magnus had agreed on most recently. It had been a difficult decision, but his love for Magnus overcame all else including his love of being a shadowhunter. He brushed aside a curl that had fallen loose and was relieved to see Raphael respond to the touch as he needed to get Raphael awake and see if calling in Catarina was necessary. 

“Raphael, you need to wake up,” he tried, keeping his tone soft in the hope that the vampire wouldn't wake swinging.

There was a pained groan in response, and Raphael continued to sleep on. Alec sighed and placed a hand on his shoulder, bracing himself in case Raphael woke up confused. “Raphael, wake up. You need to eat.” 

To his surprise, Raphael only stirred a little more before cracking one eye open. He flinched as if the little bit of light in the apartment pained him. “Papa?” he called hopefully.

“He’ll be home later,” Alec promised.

“Alec?” Raphael had only just started using Alec’s actual name right before the war, but it seemed the habit had stuck. 

“Yeah, it’s me.” 

“You found me?”

“I did. You’re safe at home now.”

“Home?”

“Our place. Mine and Magnus’s.” 

Raphael nodded and turned his head to drift back off, seemingly feeling safe enough with just Alec watching over him.

“Oh, no-not yet. Up you go,” Alec found it disturbingly easy to set Raphael up, though keeping him upright was more of a challenge. He quickly shifted to sit behind him and propped him against his chest. He held the mug in one hand and used the other to card through Raphael’s hair to try to wake him further. It should have felt awkward, but somehow it felt rather natural.

“Drink,” he instructed, and after a few moments of hesitation, Raphael cautiously sipped at the contents. His weakness was still noticeable though as was his difficulty in finishing the drink.

“I should call Cat-"

“I’m fine.” Raphael insisted, much more alert than earlier. “I’m here, so I’m fine.”

“She’ll still want to see you.” 

“Okay, but-only her. No one else yet.”

Alec sighed. “Only her for now,” he promised. “Now finish this and then you can sleep some more.”

Due to Catarina’s busy lifestyle, Alec didn’t get to see her often, but in the few times they had gotten together, they had gotten along remarkably well. He had little doubt that she would trust him enough to come without him having to share any secrets over the phone. With Raphael fed and dozing back off, Alec made a call to their favorite healer. 

“What is it you couldn’t tell me over the phone but swore me to secrecy to anyway?” she asked as she stepped through the portal. “I thought with Magnus out of town, it would be your one week to have some peace.” Then she took a look at Alec’s face. “What’s wrong?”

“It’s nothing bad,” he promised. “I just-you should see for yourself.”

He stepped aside to show her the sleeping figure on the couch. Catarina wasn’t usually the most emotional of people, but the moment she saw Raphael, she gasped. “Is it really…?” She hurried over to him and knelt next to the couch to get a closer look at him. 

“I found him in an alley. He was being attacked by a demon. I’m pretty sure that’s where those scratches came from. I’m not sure about the rest.”

“He didn’t say where’s he been?”

“I didn’t really ask. I’ve been busy trying to patch him up and get him comfortable.”

“Good. That’s exactly what you should have been doing,” Catarina agreed. 

Suddenly, Raphael shot up with a hand clasped tightly to his mouth. Alec knew that look well. He used his Shadowhunter reflexes to grab the nearest bin and place it under Raphael’s chin just in time.

“Alec,” Raphael whined between heaves. Alec was caught off guard for a moment before his protector instincts kicked in, and he began running a soothing hand up and down Raphael’s thin back. Catarina took a seat on the other side and placed a comforting hand on his knee. After a few more rough minutes, Raphael’s stomach had been emptied. Alec made sure he was finished before leaving him in Catarina’s care while he went to clean out the bin. 

“Poor boy. Magnus will be fussing all over you when he gets home, but let’s see how much better we can get you until then,” Catarina soothed. 

“It’s good to see you again,” Raphael whispered hoarsely as Catarina began using her magic to scan him for injuries.”

Catarina laughed sadly. “You haven’t changed at all. Acting like you just came back from a trip and not…,” she trailed off. 

“I don’t want to talk about it,” he said. 

“You don’t have to,” Alec assured as he returned. 

“Promise me you’ll consider talking to your papa when he gets back.”

Raphael would have flushed if he were still human. As it was, he took on the same pained expression most embarrassed teenagers tended to wear and risked a look over at Alec. “Not in front of him,” he muttered.

Alec rolled his eyes. “You realize you called Magnus ‘Papa” a little earlier right? Besides I already know what relationship you two have. Don’t feel awkward on my account.”

Raphael hid his face. “Fine,” he muttered. “I’ll think about talking to him when he gets back.”

“Good. Do I have your permission to check you for injuries?”

Raphael nodded slowly. It took a few moments, but then Catarina had checked him over, healing what she could as she did. Alec’s earlier first aid made it an easier task as she didn’t have to use magic to clean the wounds only to seal them. Some things she could not change, and they all seemed aware of it. 

“You’ll need to stay with someone who can take care of you at least until Magnus gets back. Then he can determine how healed you are from there and advise what to do from that point.”

“I really don’t think that’s necessary,” Raphael tried to insist. 

“You’re malnourished. I can only guess as to why. However, you won’t be able to eat like you’re used to without being sick. You’re also suffering from exhaustion. You will need to rest, which will heal the remaining injuries as well. So tell me, do you want to come stay with Madzie and me, or should I call Lily and arrange for you to return to the hotel?” 

Raphael clammed up. 

“You could also stay here,” Alec added.

“He’ll need constant supervision to make sure there are no side effects,” Catarina said.

“I can take time off. Izzy can handle things at the institute.”

“I want to stay here,” Raphael admitted after a moment. “If you truly don’t mind.”

“Why would I mind? You’re Magnus’s son. That makes this your home as much as mine.”

“In that case, you should get some rest,” Catarina told Raphael. “I’ll mix up a few potions that will help speed his recovery and bring them to you this afternoon. In the meantime, try giving him only a few sips of blood every other hour and see how he keeps it down,” she told Alec, ignoring Raphael's complaints about being right there. Then she used a few more spells to get Raphael fully cleaned up and changed into what she deemed more appropriate recovery clothing than the ragged outfit he had been wearing before. Catarina’s idea of recovery clothing happened to be sweats that Alec knew for a fact had come from his wardrobe. 

“I’m not a big fan of ‘borrowing’ from strangers,” she replied cheekily when Alec shot her a look. “Take care, both of you. I will send some things over this afternoon. 

That left Alec and Raphael alone once more. Only Raphael was much more awake than before, and that made things awkward. They really had been getting closer before Raphael’s death. Supposed death? Anyway, besides meeting more often for business reasons, they had also been meeting more casually. Dinners, movie nights, even the occasional shopping trip had occurred, but the one thing those events all had in common was that Magnus had always been there with them. In fact, Alec was pretty sure that that day was the longest amount of time he and Raphael had spent alone together. 

“Is there anything I can get you?” he asked. 

Raphael shook his head. He swung his legs back up and curled up on the couch with a small wince. “Actually, could you…,” he swallowed. “tell me what has happened while I was away?”

“Oh! Of course!” Alec sat down in a nearby chair. “Where would you like me to start?”

“From the battle.”

“Okay. Well, first…”


	2. Lips are Sealed

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> More fluff but a secret is revealed or rather a secret about a secret

Alec filled Raphael in as best as he could. He told him how the final battle had ended. He told him about some of the activities of his clan under Lily’s command and how the New York Institute out of all of the institutes had the best alliance with the downworlders. 

“Of course things are good there. You’re the head of the institute,” Raphael said causing Alec to blush. He hadn’t been aware that he had somehow earned Raphael’s respect in such a way. 

“I just do what I think is right,” he replied. Then to cover his embarrassment he told him about what everyone had been doing lately. He talked about how Catarina was up to the usual as he had seen for himself, but Madzie’s life had changed in nearly every way with her new school where she got to play with other downworlder children and her extracurricular activities not revolving around magic. He told them him about Maia had opened a nightclub with her fiance but was still applying to MBA programs because she couldn’t get enough of school, of how Simon still played in his band and had become more involved with the academy and not just because he and Isabelle were dating, how Isabelle had taken on more of a leadership role in the academy in the forensics department particularly, how Clary and Jace were on again and off again but mostly on, and finally how he and Magnus had gotten married.

“The two of you really made it official so soon?” Raphael asked.

Alec shrugged. “We knew it was what we wanted. We weren’t going to let anyone else’s opinions get in the way of that.”

“And that was…last year?”

“10 months, two weeks, and 3 days ago.”

For as much crap as Raphael gave Magnus, he was glad that he had finally found someone who adored him the way he deserved. However, he wasn’t able to appreciate the sentiment for long as he realized what that meant.

“So I was gone for…”

“Two years.” 

He had spent two years in that place, and even though it had seemed longer, knowing how long he had been gone had made it feel much more real. 

Alec noticed his drifting and was quick to try to calm him. “You’re safe now,” he reminded him. 

“I just didn’t realize how long…”

“We would have looked for you if we had known.”

“You wouldn’t have found me,” Raphael replied, and thankfully, unlike Magnus would have done, Alec didn’t press him for answers why. “Anyway, you two have had children yet?” he asked looking warily around in case any mini Magnus's might suddenly come running out.

Alec chuckled at that. “Hundreds of downworlders and a handful of shadowhunters.”

“You know that’s not what I meant.”

“I know. We don’t have any. Not yet. We talked about it. We’re waiting until after I take on my immortality unless fate intervenes.”

Raphael raised an eyebrow and glanced at Alec’s stomach. “I really don’t think that’s going to happen. Unless there’s something you two haven’t told me.”

“No, I just mean-like a Madzie situation,” Alec stammered out. 

Raphael laughed, enjoying how easy it was to make Alec nervous. Originally it had been fun to rile the shadowhunter up, but after Magnus and Alec had made things serious, Raphael had switched from riling to teasing. It had caused less tension between the two of them, and Magnus seemed to have a lot of fun with it as well.

“No kids then.”

“No kids yet, and don’t worry, you’ll still be one of the favorites even when we do officially adopt some of our own,” Alec replied, and Raphael was reminded that Alec was pretty good at playing the game too. 

Raphael was about to remind him of just how much older he was than the shadowhunter when one of the walls began to shimmer. He started to pull himself to his feet but was stopped by Alec jumping in front of him, having grabbed a weapon from one of the many hidden places in the apartment. 

A familiar door appeared, and Raphael collapsed back in relief. 

“I haven’t seen that in awhile.”

“What is it?” Alec asked, still watching it warily as if he expected the door to open and for someone to launch an attack at them.

“It’s my old bedroom,” Raphael explained and began the painful process of pulling himself to his feet. 

“Of course, it is,” Alec mumbled. He had lived in a magical apartment long enough to know what it was capable of doing, but that didn’t stop him from being surprised at actually seeing it in action, at least whenever it acted without Magnus there anyway. 

The room itself was not quite what Alec would associate with Raphael’s style. It was still stylish, because every room in Magnus’s apartment was stylish, but it lacked the gloom of the hotel. It was also a bit more youthful looking. It still had plenty of dramatic flair, but it was far more suitable for a young teenager than for the head of a vampire clan. Alec imagined that except for a few cleaning spells, the room had been undisturbed from the last time Raphael had used it.

Raphael was studying the room as much as he was. His hand ghosted over a nearby dresser, and he stepped toward a bookshelf filled with what appeared to be nothing but fantasy stories. Unfortunately, his body was not up to the task, and Alec just barely grabbed hold of him before he hit the floor. 

“Let’s get you to the bed.” 

“I’m fine.”

“Sure you are. Why don’t you try being fine in bed for awhile,” Alex suggested and set about getting him sorted. 

“Don’t you think tucking me in is a bit much?” 

Honestly, Alec hadn’t even noticed that that was what he had been doing. Years of putting his younger siblings back to bed after nightmares or after an exhausting day of training had caused the motions to become instinctive. “Be nice or you won’t get a story,” he half teased. 

Raphael held back a snort at the comment and sunk into the blankets. That was when Alec noticed the very uncovered window, and the ray of sunlight just barely reaching the foot of the bed. He hurried to cover the window with whatever was nearby, but Raphael spoke up. 

“Don’t bother. It’s spelled,” he said. 

“What?”

“He could only get the ingredients to do one window. It is actually surprisingly difficult to accomplish, but he made sure that I was completely safe in here.” 

Alec hummed to himself. He had a good idea of a way to ensure that he was safe no matter what room he was in, but it would take a bit of planning and a call. In the meantime, he had enough to keep him busy. “Do you need anything else?”

Raphael shook his head. 

“Okay then, it’s probably best if you try to sleep some more until Catarina can get those potions to us. I’ve got some paperwork for the Clave, but if you need anything, just call for me.”

Raphael grunted something that sounded like an agreement, and Alec left the room, closing the door only part of the way behind him. 

Raphael twisted around in the bed to try to get comfortable. It had been a long time since he had slept in one. While he had been gone-he didn’t want to think about that. He finally found a position that didn’t cause any aches and closed his eyes. It seemed like only moments passed before Alec was shaking him back awake. 

“Raphael, come on. Wake up! You have to wake up now!” 

Raphael jumped out of bed at Alec’s tone only to be grabbed by the wrist. “This way!” Alec said, dragging Raphael along before he could even get a sense of what was happening. He heard Magnus’s many cats hissing, but he didn’t see anything even as Alec tugged him through a portal with him to land in Catarina’s place. 

“Are you two okay?” Catarina asked as she sealed off the portal behind them. 

Alec nodded. “You got us just in time,” he replied as he guided Raphael to sit on a nearby chair. 

“What happened?” Raphael asked. 

“The wards went off at Magnus’s place. Something bad was coming. I called Cat to portal us out of there.” 

Raphael had a sinking feeling he knew what or rather who it had been. But he had been certain he had lost him-hadn’t he?

“Hey, no, don’t do that. You’re safe. We can keep you safe, and when Magnus returns, we’ll handle whatever this is,” Alec assured as Raphael’s eyes took on a haunted expression. 

“He’s right. We can handle whatever this is, but it would be easier if you would just tell us what we are going against,” Catarina said. 

“I can’t,” Raphael insisted. “Not even with Magnus,” he said revealing that his earlier promise had been mostly a lie.

Madzie, who had been sitting nearby observing them all while grinding herbs under Catarina’s supervision, looked at him knowingly. “It’s a bad spell. The no talking spell,” she said and jabbed the pestle against the mortar a little harder than before. 

Raphael just looked at her unable to make any other indication that he had heard her words. 

“What was that?” Catarina asked her. 

“He’s wearing the no talking spell,” Madzie replied. “You can talk about food and drawing and stories, but you can never talk about the secret,” she explained. 

Catarina and Alec both looked to him, but Raphael kept looking at Madzie. “You can’t say anything about it then? Not even about the spell?” Catarina asked. 

Raphael could only roll his eyes.

“Right. We’ll need another potion then. Madzie, get the book.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I know it's taking awhile, but Magnus is on his way home. For now, Alec and Raphael have to figure out their relationship first.


	3. Speak the Name

Catarina and Madzie worked together to find the cure for the curse, and Alec did that thing where he paced the room. Raphael watched them all from where he had been sentenced to the couch. He was much more alert than earlier, but his body still felt weaker than it should. 

“Are you certain there’s no way to reach Magnus?” Alec asked. He spun his wedding band with his thumb in what was a definite habit. 

“If anyone would know a way to reach him, I’m certain it would be you,” Catarina reminded him. “Now, why don’t you fix some blood for Raphael while Madzie and I finish working on this.” It wasn’t a suggestion.

Raphael bit back a remark about being coddled. There was a child present and besides that, Magnus wouldn’t be back for a few days yet to save him if he ticked off everyone else. Both Catarina and Alec had a strong gift for passive aggressiveness when the situation called for it, and he did not want to be on the receiving end of it. It was still frustrating. He had known that his escape would use up what little energy he had left, but he had not expected it to leave him so weak for so long. 

Alec returned with a mug, and Raphael scrambled to push himself up before the other could help him like earlier. Then he reached out a shaking hand to take the drink. 

“Are you sure you have it?”

“I can handle it.” 

“It would be better with one of my straws,” Madzie interrupted suddenly. Catarina chuckled a little as the girl hopped off the stool she had been standing on and ran into the kitchen only to return with a glittery twisting straw. Unable to resist her adorable expression, Raphael just thanked her when she plunked it into his mug then returned to working on the spell. 

“Tell no one about this,” Raphael hissed lowly as Alec too a seat beside him. 

“Please. I’m not Magnus, Simon, Jace, or…anyone else. I won’t use anything as blackmail unless it’s happened after you’ve been fully healed.”

“Magnus wouldn’t use it as blackmail.”

“Not intentionally, but he would think it was adorable and take lots of pictures which would likely be discovered by a nosy friend at some point.” 

There was no arguing with that logic. Raphael knew that Alec was younger. He had seen firsthand how the man had gone from being insecure and burdened down with responsibilities to being much more confident and comfortable in his life. In many ways, Raphael thought the shadowhunter was just as mature as warlock husband or more mature even when it came to certain things. 

Raphael sipped at the drink long enough to please the others then sat back and tried to keep his stomach from ridding itself of its contents again. “What is our plan?” 

“We’ll get this curse handled then based on what you can tell us make further plans from there.” And there was that natural leadership quality Magnus was always bragging about. 

“I am not certain that it would be wise to return to the apartment without Magnus,” Catarina advised. 

“We can stay at the institute until he returns. It will be the safest place.”

“Don’t I get a say?” Raphael asked. 

“Where else would we go?” Alec replied. 

“I don’t know. I …” He didn’t want to see people. He didn’t want to have to deal with the looks of shock then pity. He definitely didn’t want to have to explain what had happened over and over again, especially when he hadn’t even been able to speak to Magnus about it yet. 

“I can make sure no one sees you,” Alec offered. “As head of the institute, I can forbid people from entering rooms. No one will know you’re there unless you want them to know.”

Raphael just wanted to stop running, but he knew Alec was right. It was bad enough that they were at Catarina’s place. Who knew if he was being tracked even there? The hotel was out of the question as well. That left only the institute which as Alec had pointed out was likely the safest place he could be, especially as the son of the husband of the head of the institute.

That realization caused Raphael to lose hold of the mug. Alec swooped in and grabbed it before anything could be spilled or broken. He placed it aside and focused on Raphael. “What’s wrong?” 

“You’re married to my papa,” Raphael stated. For all their teasing earlier, what they had both forgotten was that there was a bit of truth to the situation.

“Yeah?” 

“I’m the son of the husband of the head of the New York Institute.”

Alec made a face as he thought that over. “And?”

Catarina, who had caught on much faster, was laughing hysterically. She fought to calm herself and took a deep breath before clearing things up. 

“I believe Raphael has just realized that he is the stepson of a shadowhunter.”

Alec’s eyes widened. “Oh….OH!” He sat back with a look of disbelief on his face. “I had not actually considered that.” But he had definitely started to. 

Raphael watched Alec’s face trying to get a read on his expressions. The title didn’t have to mean anything. It wasn’t actually official, and Raphael was an adult despite his physical appearance being frozen in his teens. Still, Raphael found himself worrying over what Alec was thinking. 

“Once you’re ready to tell people that you’re back, you should definitely take advantage of this,” Alec finally said. 

“What?”

“Well, Jace always wanted to be the fun uncle.”

Raphael groaned. He had forgotten that Alec came with a family of his own. 

“Well, before you two start planning family dinners, why don’t we see if we can get rid of this curse?” Catarina said. She had that smirk on her face though that meant she was totally going to bring up the whole situation again as soon as she was able to do so. In the meantime, she handed Raphael a pungent smelling concoction. 

“It’s best to down it all at once. Don’t sip at it,” she warned. 

Raphael threw back the shot and swallowed hard to force it down. It burned like sunlight going down his throat, and he was grateful he didn’t need to breathe right then. After a few moments, he determined it was safe to move again. 

“Did it work?” Alec asked anxiously. 

Catarina was watching Raphael carefully. “He’s the only one who can tell us.” 

“Raphael?” Alec tried, and damn, when had he learned to mimic Magnus’s parental tone so well. Did he even know he was doing it? “Who is trying to hurt you?”

Raphael stared straight ahead at the wall then forced himself to say the name. “Asmodeus.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry! I meant to have Magnus back already, but there were still some things that had to be handled. Don't worry. The longer he's absent, the more fluff he will bring with him.


	4. Portals

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Will they ever find a place to be safe?

“Why would he take you?”

“Abuelo is not happy about certain things and wanted to have some fun of his own,” Raphael replied dryly, not willing to get into the details right then. 

His chest ached. The scars running across his body burned fresh, and he dug his fingers into his knee to keep from touching them. Without looking up, he knew both Alec and Catarina were staring at him. Madzie thankfully still had that children’s tact that came from short attention spans and was hurriedly cleaning things up so that she could start doing something more fun. Catarina began gathering more freshly made tonics and ointments and handing them to Alec along with instructions. 

“We should relocate before he tracks me here, and you two…”

“Don’t worry about us. We’ll be in a safe place,” Catarina promised. “We’ll return once Magnus is here.”

Raphael looked to Catarina and Madzie. “I owe both of you so much.”

“It’s never a problem, Raphael. You have always done the same for us,” Catarina assured. 

“We should head to the institute now.” Alec was being surprisingly calm about everything, but Raphael knew he was coming up with plans. “If you could portal us to the back then I can get us the rest of the way inside.” 

Another portal and this time to the place he couldn’t stand. He tried to ignore Alec’s arm around his shoulder, but it was hard to ignore the thing guiding him and supporting him at the same time. It had been a long time since anyone had made him feel like a child, and yet this man not even half his age was succeeding at it pretty well. 

“This is ridiculous,” Raphael muttered as they stepped into the shaded back part of the institute. 

“If you don’t want people to know you’re here, then I suggest being as quiet as possible,” Alec reminded him. He pulled out his stele and activated a few of his runes. Speed, strength, stealth. Okay, they probably had other names, but Raphael wasn’t interested in the details of Shadowhunter runes. “Don’t get pissed.”

“What?” And then he was up. Alec practically flew through the hallways with Raphael in his arms until he reached the bedroom. He set Raphael down onto the bed went around locking the doors. 

“No one saw us. They’re all busy working at this hour.”

Raphael looked around. “Your plan is to keep me in your room like a stray dog you are trying to hide from your parents?”

“My room has an adjoining room. Max used to use it.”

“Is he…”

“He’s alive. We almost lost him in the war, but he survived. He decided to finish his training at another academy. I’m concerned that he doesn't feel safe here any longer, but he says that’s not what it is.”

“Because it’s not. He’s more independent. You, Jace, and Isabelle have always had each other. He’s used to doing things on his own, and as long as he stayed here, you all would have continued to see him as the younger brother. He needs a chance to grow into himself.”

“You talk like you have experience.”

“I had to pull away from Magnus for a while.” He had been in his thirties, and Magnus had still been coddling him. He had needed a chance to prove himself competent and had become head of a clan in the process.

“And you think that is what Max is doing?”

“Unlike us, Max is not sentenced to immortality. Once he grows up, he’ll stay an adult, and he deserves those adventures and experiences. He’ll still need you, but it won’t be how it is with us.” 

“And how will it be different for us? Magnus explained, but I'm not sure I understood.”

“A second opinion is always assuring,” Raphael said knowingly. “We gain experiences as immortals, but we do not actually grow. We can slip until our emotional state matches our physical.”

“I still don’t understand.”

“No one does until they experience it themselves.” And Alec was still to young to feel much of a difference between ages.

Alec nodded looking deep in thought even as he moved around the rooms ensuring that the wards Magnus had placed were still in place. Wards upon wards had been placed on the institute until it had become practically invincible. Raphael could feel the familiar magic surrounding him just as it had in the apartment. Alec had been right. The combination of Magnus’s power along with that of that of the shadowhunters and the Silent Brothers made the institute the safest place for him right then.

“You really won’t tell anyone that I’m here?” Raphael asked as he got settled into the bed in the adjoining bedroom. Alec was reinforcing the lock on the doors in there. “Not even your siblings?”

“I don’t like keeping things from them,” Alec admitted. “But if it’s what you need, I promise I won’t tell them.”

“If you tell them, do I have to see them?”

“No. I can keep them out just like anyone else,” he promised. 

“Let me think about it.”

“Of course. Take your time. I should make an appearance and let them know no one was trying to break in. Do you need anything?”

“Just sleep.”

Alec seemed reluctant to leave him even after ensuring the place was secured.

“I will be sleeping in a well-secured room in the middle of a heavily guarded institute. I believe I can be without a nanny for a few hours.”

“I’ll be back in a half hour at the longest.”

“You’re worse than Magnus,” Raphael mumbled into the pillow. 

There was a deep chuckle. "Get used to it.”

*****

Alec checked the wards again as Raphael drifted off. He knew how Magnus felt about Raphael. After the war when the dust had started to settle, Magnus had been inconsolable. He had been in a deep depression for weeks. He had cast every spell, talked to every source, and looked every place possible to see if there was any way Raphael could have somehow survived. Alec had been right by his side. They had searched every moment until it slowly sank in that he wasn’t coming back. After that, they had grieved. Magnus had grieved for his son, and Alec had grieved for a friend and for Magnus’s loss. While they were grieving, Magnus had shared every story about his son until Alec began to see an entirely new side of the supposed big bad vampire.

Now Raphael was back, and Alec was going to make sure that he stayed perfectly safe. He had to. More than that, he wanted to. He had ways of getting blood. There was enough in the infirmary, that Alec was certain no one would notice a few packets missing, especially since they had started pulling from the stash whenever they had newly vampiric guests staying at the institute until they could be matched with a clan. That had taken some adjusting, but Alec had a good amount of support behind him from those who had fought alongside downworlders during the war. 

“I wasn’t expecting you back today,” Jace said as soon as Alec stepped into the hall

He hated lying to his brother. “Something’s wrong with the wards. I’m going to stay here until Magnus returns and can check them over.”

Jace frowned. “Anything serious?”

“It’s nothing we can’t handle. In the meantime, I moved some of Magnus’s more magical things into the adjoining room to keep them safe. I put locks on the doors and checked the wards, but could you make sure everyone knows not to go near it?”

“It’s not that one cat is it? Or his two friends?” Jace backed away warily, eyes filled with distrust.

Right. He would have to go back for the cats if they didn’t all show up by nightfall. “You’re going to need to be more specific.”

“Hey! Most of them like me. It’s just the three that I accidentally collapsed on that one time. Who knew they held grudges?"

Who knew a shadowhunter could be clumsy enough to collapse on top of three sleeping cats?

“They’re all on their way here. Just let them in for now. I can set them up in my room.”

“Sure. Need help with anything else? You’re looking a little stressed.”

“It’s just been a long day.”

“Well, you’re home now. Let me take care of some things." Jace offered. "Will I see you at dinner? Clary’s cooking.”

“Yeah, I’ll see you then,” Alec promised. Raphael would no doubt want another break from him by then anyway. He checked in with Isabelle, who was sparring with Clary, and told both of them the same story he had told Jace. Then he sought out two of the more gossipy shadowhunters and passed the story on to them knowing that they would handle getting the word out to the rest. On the way back to his room, he stopped by the entrances to check for cats, letting in the earliest arrivals of the “strays” (seriously, he couldn’t call them strays anymore when they all had been named and had their own monogrammed beds both inside and outside of Magnus’s apartment). The felines then followed him to the infirmary and to the kitchen before they all slipped back into his room.

“I forgot about the magic litter boxes,” he groaned as the cats darted past him. “All of you do me a favor and use the toilet, yeah?” If a normal cat on youtube could do it, then magical cats should definitely be able to. He hoped.

An ear-piercing yell sounded, and he practically tripped over the cats in his haste to get to Raphael, grabbing the emergency bow and arrows he kept in his room on the way. He barged into the adjoining bedroom and scanned the room. They were alone. He was certain of it. The wards were unaffected, but the cats had gathered around the bed watching a thrashing Raphael with what counted as cat concern. 

Alec tossed aside his bow, hoped his strength rune was still working, and then sat on the edge of the bed. He caught Raphael’s flying wrists while managing to dodge any accidental punches in the process. “Raph? Wake up,” he said as calmly as he could manage which wasn’t an easy feat considering he had a terrified vampire currently screaming and crying in front of him. 

Raphael was pleading in his sleep. A string of English and Spanish was tossed around so fast that Alec could only catch a few of the words. The idea seemed to be the same. He was begging for the pain to stop. Raphael’s wounds, which were supposed to be healed, had opened back up, and angry burns crossed over his arms, chest, and face. Alec kept his grip just tight enough to keep Raphael from injuring either of them and tried to pull him out of the nightmare. He needed to handle the situation quickly. 

“Raphael, wake up!” Alec tried again, yelling directly into the vampire’s ear. 

That worked, sort of. Raphael shot up, lunging straight into Alec as he did. “It’s okay. You’re okay,” Alec assured him, and instinct took over again. He adjusted his hold on Raphael until he had him on his lap. He could feel tears soaking through his shirt, but he kept his hold on Raphael, stroking his hair and the small section of his back which wasn’t injured. He had to get him awake and calm, so he could treat the wounds. 

After several moments, the sobs trickled off into an occasional sniffle, and Alec knew the exact moment Raphael shifted from dream state back to reality as the body in his lap stiffened and then tried to pull away. 

“Careful,” Alec warned. “You’re bleeding.” He slid him off his lap and back onto the mattress. “Are you okay?”

“I’m fine,” Raphael insisted and swiped angrily at his eyes in a way that made him look painfully young. 

“I don’t think you are.”

"I don't want to talk about it."

"I know, but it might help."

"I don't want to remember what he did to me. I ...I thought I was there for so long. It felt like decades. Every morning was the same. Every night was different. I can't go back.'

“And you won’t,” Alec promised. “You are safe. We will protect you.”

“I can’t let anyone risk themselves for me. Not you. Not papa. Not the vampires or the shadowhunters or anyone else."

“This is what families do. We’re stronger together.” And yeah, all of those movies Magnus had forced on him had made him cheesy, but it was the only thing he could think to say. "You have to trust us right now. Would you let one of us deal with something like this on our own?"

"No," Raphael admitted. 

"Then let us help you."

They were both quiet for several long minutes. then Raphael nodded slowly. “You can tell them. The others. It will be safer if you are not hiding things from each other.”

Alec nodded and started to stand. Raphael clutched at his arm. “I can’t talk to them yet.”

“I’m not going to them yet,” Alec promised. “I need to get you taken care of first. Let me take care of your wounds and get some blood into you. I can tell the others tonight when I have dinner with them, and I’ll keep them from visiting you until you’re ready.”

Raphael nodded weakly. 

“Will you let me bandage you up now? Cat warned that this might happen and gave me some stuff to use on it.”

Raphael nodded again, and Alec began the long task of carefully cleaning out each wound once more. This time he bandaged them, remembering what Catarina had told him about cursed wounds and how they had to be healed multiple times before fully disappearing. He had helped Raphael pull on a fresh set of sleep clothes and gotten him some more blood to drink before the vampire spoke again.

“I want Papa.”

Alec took hold of Raphael's hand. “I do too.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Chapter 5 will include: secrets coming out, Magnus returning, and a plan of attack. 
> 
> On another note: I'm a little worried that this is bordering on the brink of nonsexual age-play that isn't quite age-play, but it is a lot of platonic cuddling and gratuitous Raphael whump for cuddles. I wouldn't really call it age-play maybe a bit of age-regression to a more vulnerable state but not actually like a baby or anything. I don't even know what this would be classified is except for maybe self-indulgent writing. There is a definite plot hidden in among all this that will kick in as soon as Magnus returns which will be in the next chapter. If you have any suggestions for tags for warnings or anything please leave me a note, and I'll be sure to add them in accordingly. Let me know what you want to see in future chapters!


	5. Papa's home

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> omg, I think it's developing into a plot

There were seven cats on the bed which meant everyone was accounted for. They surrounded Raphael, except for the spot claimed by Alec, who had not moved from Raphael’s side since his nightmare. The vampire had finally fallen into a dreamless sleep, thanks to one particularly potent potion Catarina had given them. She had also given a strong warning to not use it more than necessary, saying that Raphael would not be pleased with some of the side effects which could include minor hallucinations among other unpleasant but thankfully mild things. However, after the nightmare, Alec had deemed it necessary. It had taken surprisingly little effort to convince Raphael of the same. 

Only once he was completely convinced that Raphael would continue sleeping peacefully did Alec start getting ready for dinner. The events of the day were catching up to him, and Alec suddenly realized that he had not slept since well before he had ever gone out on the patrol that had led to his discovering Raphael early that morning. He was tempted to send Jace an apology text and try to rest instead, but since Raphael had agreed to let the others know he had returned and since there was a greater demon currently trying to steal him right back, Alec felt that they would stand a better chance if they could start making plans right away. The more Shadowhunters actively protecting Raphael, the better off they all would be. 

“Keep on eye on him and come find me if he needs me,” Alec ordered the cats after he had splashed his face with some cold water and refreshed a stamina rune. Chairman Meow was the only one to respond, but that was good enough. Alec already felt ridiculous talking to the cats despite years of Magnus assuring that they could understand him.

He debated how to break the news to the others. He wasn’t the most tactful, but he did know he couldn’t just blurt it out. Then again it would make things easier. He could blurt, they could process, and then they could get on to what needed to be handled. After all, he was breaking the news that someone was not dead. How traumatized could they all get over that?

He scratched at the stamina rune. Sleep really would have been the better option, but there was no turning back now. Clary was not a particularly fancy cook, but over the years she had honed a few dishes to where Alec actually looked forward to eating them. He was still a little wary of a few of the foods, one of which she was just putting on the table when he arrived. 

“You’re right on time,” she greeted just as Alec determined that he would probably steer clear of the meat. She could cook steak fine, but it was one thing to under-cook beef. It was an entirely different situation to under-cook chicken.

“Of course, I’m on time. You’re cooking.” It wasn’t so much flattery for Clary but a gentle teasing for Isabelle, who took it as such and stuck her tongue out at him in return. 

“Were you able to get Magnus’s things settled in? And the cats?” Isabelle asked once she had regained her maturity.

“Uh yeah,” he muttered while scooping food onto his plate.

“And are you planning on telling us what you’re hiding anytime soon?” Jace asked around a mouthful of macaroni. 

“Don’t talk with your mouth full,” Alec chided instinctively. “And yes, actually.”

Isabelle frowned. “That was too easy. He gave in too soon.” 

“Must be serious then,” Clary noted with a sigh.

“Is everyone okay?” 

“Yes and no,” he poked at the chicken that had found its way onto his plate via Clary’s help. “I wanted to tell you three earlier, but I had promised not to. Now, he’s agreed that you should all know.”

“Magnus?” Isabelle guessed. 

“No, not Magnus. He’s still off where I can’t reach him. How do I put this?” Oh good, the chicken was over-cooked. He could at least stomach it.

“Alec, stop killing the chicken and just tell us,” Isabelle urged.

“Give me a minute.” 

They were silent, but he could feel their gazes on him as he quietly ate his food while thinking about how to phrase things. He decided it would be best to finish what he wanted to eat of his food before telling them because he knew they would bombard him with questions as soon as he broke the news. When he finally put his fork down, he heard all three of them sigh in relief. 

“So…,” he started. “Raphael didn’t die two years ago. I found him this morning. Asmodeus had him and wants him back. I need all of you to help me protect him until Magnus gets back and we can decide what to do.”

There, he had blurted it all out, and now they could process it.

Jace tilted his head. “Raphael is alive? Like alive alive?”

“He’s a vampire. Same as when he left.”

“I need to see him,” Isabelle was half out of her seat when Alec caught hold of her wrist and gently stopped her. 

“He’s not up to seeing people yet, and I promised him he wouldn’t have to until he decided he was ready.”

“Is he here in the institute?” Clary asked. 

“He’s in Max’s old room. He’s sleeping.” 

“And Asmodeus has had him this whole time?” Isabelle looked sick at the thought of it. “Magnus will not be happy.”

“That’s partly why we need to wait for his return before we make a move.” 

Jace sighed. “The other part is that without Magnus on our side to face him, we would probably all die.”

“Is Raphael okay?”

Wounds that wouldn’t stay closed, nightmares, trouble even moving: Alec wouldn’t call any of that okay, but he didn’t want to face his sister when she was making those terrified faces.

“He will be fine,” he finally replied because that was the truth. It had to be. 

“What can we do in the meantime?” Clary asked. “Does he need anything? We can bring things to your room for you if you don’t want to leave him.” 

Alec had to give Clary credit. Sometimes, she had brilliant ideas. 

“Actually, he needs fresh blood every three hours. We technically need to have an official vote on whether the shadowhunters as a faction will be officially supporting Raphael or not. If not, I need to find another safe place…”

“They’ll help,” Isabelle assured. “The majority of them admire and support you. If you ask them for this favor, they won’t refuse you, and Raphael fought alongside us during the war. He was responsible for bringing in the vampire allies who helped us to win. We owe him this.”

“And if anyone disagrees, we’ll handle them,” Jace assured with both Isabelle and Clary quickly agreeing. 

They all began making schedules and listing what needed to be done until a tail in the corner caught Alec’s, and Chairman Meow entered the room. “Shit,” Alec murmured and pushed away from the table. “I’ve got to go.”

He didn’t wait to see the others’ reactions and instead jogged after Chairman Meow as he led the way back to the bedrooms. At least there didn’t seem to be any attacks happening right then. He was still cautious as he entered each room, making sure that no one was hiding out waiting to attack. 

All he found was a half-awake vampire sitting up in bed. “I told you not to get him,” Raphael muttered as Chairman Meow jumped back up onto the bed. Even while frowning at the cat, he still pet him on gently on the head. 

“What’s wrong?” Alec asked while studying him for any signs of another nightmare. It was hard to miss the bloodshot eyes or the strewn bedclothes. Even though Raphael had managed to wake himself up that time didn’t mean he wasn’t just as upset by it all. 

“Nothing. I’m fine. I woke up is all,” Raphael lied.

Alec hmmmmed. “That’s strange. You should still be sleeping. That potion was strong.” 

“Maybe I didn’t take enough.” He shrugged then winced at the movement. “It’s been awhile since I’ve been so weak,” he admitted.

“It’s not permanent. You’re going to get better. How do you feel after that potion though? Are you having any of the side effects?”

“Not yet.”

“That’s good.”

Raphael finally looked up at him, studying his expression carefully. “You look awful.”

“Thanks,” Alec replied dryly.

“Seriously, if you die, Magnus will never be happy. It will completely ruin my homecoming.” 

Alec was relieved to see Raphael’s dark humor had returned. 

“You should rest too,” the vampire pointed out. “Did you eat yet? You didn’t leave dinner early just became that obsessive cat came and got you, did you?”

“I ate,” Alec assured. 

“And you told them?”

“Yes, they’re probably checking the weapons now. Nothing will attack you while you’re here.”

The door to his room opened and shut with a loud bang. “Alexander!” 

Both Raphael and Alec froze at the voice. 

“Is that…?”

“Magnus!” Alec called back hopefully. He motioned for Raphael to remain in bed while he went to check out the situation. 

Magnus’s eyes for frantic. It was the first thing Alec noticed about his husband. “Oh Alexander, I was so worried!” he exclaimed and stepped forward to embrace him. 

Alec returned the embrace. “I’m fine. How are you back so early?” 

“The wards. When something that powerful touches my wards I know it, no matter where I am. I’m never taking another out of realm job again. The amount of power it takes to portal back,….I could have been too late. I would have been too late.”

“I am perfectly safe,” Alec assured.

“You weren’t there when it happened?”

“I was, but Cat portaled us to her place immediately.”

“Us? Catarina was there?”

“No, um…Magnus, a lot has happened today. I want you to prepare yourself.”

“Darling, whatever it is, just tell me.”

Alec clasped Magnus’s hand firmly in his own. “Come with me.” Seeing it for himself would probably be the better option. 

Raphael was already out of bed when they reached him. He was standing shakily, but he was standing. All seven cats were swarming around his feet trying to get him to sit back down, but the vampire was determined. However, the moment he saw Magnus, his legs gave out and he landed firmly on the mattress. 

“Papa?” 

“Is it…am I…”

“It’s really him. I found him this morning.”

“Oh my dear dear boy.” Magnus was across the room hugging Raphael before they could blink. He gathered Raphael up as well as he could and clutched him to his chest. “You’re really here. You’re alive. How?”

Alec started to leave to give them a moment, but to his surprise, Raphael stopped him. “Stay. Please. You missed him too.” There was more to it than that, and they both knew it. 

“I’m right here,” Alec assured. 

Magnus looked between them with some surprise, but then went back to assuring himself of Raphael’s presence. For his part, Raphael was clinging to Magnus just as tightly. His arms were wrapped around Magnus’s neck while his face was pressed against his shoulder. “Papa, I’m so sorry. I made you worry.”

“Where have you been? How are you? Are you injured?”

Raphael just clung to Magnus even tighter. Alec approached them and took a seat next to Magnus. “I had Catarina look him over. She gave us some things to use.”

“Good. That’s good. She’s better than I am at healing, but could I still see? I just want to make sure.” He directed the last half to Raphael, who very slowly loosened his grip and moved a few inches back. Magnus let his hands over Raphael’s body searching for what damage had been done. He frowned when he found the old scars and swore under his breath at the cursed wounds. 

“I will kill whoever did this to you.”

Magnus’s eyes were blazing, and Raphael suddenly began to shake. “It’s Papa. It’s Papa. It’s Papa,” he muttered under his breath. 

“What’s wrong?” Magnus tried to calm him.

“I think he’s having a flashback. Raphael?”

Raphael’s eyes darted from Magnus over to Alec, and he visibly relaxed. “I’m fine.”

“Yes, it’s our quote of the day apparently. Why don’t you try to rest some more? I can give him the short version of things while you sleep.”

Raphael shook his head. “No, I have to do it now. I want this over with. I want to move on.”

Alec sighed. “Fine, but get into bed first and let your Papa bandage that wound you tore open again when you stood.”

Raphael rolled his eyes but did as he told while Magnus watched, both concerned but also amused. He quickly patched up the wound for Raphael, making sure not to show any anger again for fear of once more upsetting Raphael. 

“I want to talk without any interruptions,” Raphael started. “If you say anything then I won’t be able to continue, and I don’t know if I can do it again.”

Both Magnus and Alec agreed, and Raphael began his story. “It started with Sebastian.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Oh look! Magnus is here now! 
> 
> Chapter 6: What exactly happened while Raphael was gone? Flashback to the past.


	6. What happened

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Raphael recalls what happened during his time away.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Putting the notes upfront this time. There's description of torture in this chapter. Skip ahead to the non italic part if you can't handle that or skip the chapter altogether. I tried to keep it from being too descriptive. 
> 
> If there's anything you're looking forward to seeing in future chapters, let me know and I'll see what I can do.

_“All you have to do is kill him. Prove your loyalty to me, and you and all yours will go free.” Sebastian said as if he had not just asked the impossible of him._

_Raphael’s eyes darted to where Magnus and Luke were equally trapped. “I owe him,” he protested._

_“Forget a little debt. I can give you more than he ever could.” Sebastian stepped closer than him. The smirk on his face was unbearable._

_Raphael bit back his anger as much as he could, knowing he was in a situation he could not easily win. “I already convinced the Night Children to join you. Is that not enough proof of my allegiance?”_

_“Don’t be difficult. All you have to do is kill the warlock. Do it, and I’ll give you everything. Refuse me again, and you won’t live to deny me again.”_

_“I am not going to kill him.”_

_Magnus’s scream. Raphael would remember that for longer than he did the feeling of a blade cutting into his heart. It had been the most desperate sound he had ever heard, and all he had been able to do in response was whisper the one word that would go on to both condemn him and save him._

_“Papa”_

_There was a gap missing in his memories. Raphael supposed it was during the time that he had been dead. The shadowhunters had rescued Magnus and Luke. They would have rescued him too, but there had been nothing left of him to rescue. That was what he managed to piece together from when Alec had very reluctantly caught him up on that part of the story._

_What had actually happened was that Sebastian had heard the word slip from his lips, and he had used that ridiculous amount of power of his to make sure the blade did not entirely end his unlife. The same way he had used his power to teleport him while making it look like he had disintegrated._

_A knife to the heart should have ended him. It should have sent him to wherever vampires go when they die. Instead, he woke chained in a dungeon with a gaping wound in his chest and the familiar feeling of burnt flesh attempting to mend itself._

_“Is this hell?”_

_A chuckle sounded nearby. “It is.”_

_Fear. It had been a very long time since he had experienced true paralyzing fear, but he recognized the sensation instantly._

_“Now now, don’t panic yet. We haven’t even started the fun.”_

_Raphael slowly pulled himself up. Something about that voice was familiar. “You,” he gritted out. “Asmodeus.” He pieced together enough to know that while he was in hell, he was not completely dead, not yet anyway. “Release me.”  
“Children these days,” Asmodeus muttered. “They just don’t appreciate their elders. You should want to spend time with your grandfather. Most people don’t get the chance to do so.”_

_“Grandfather?” Raphael spat._

_“Sebastion told me himself. You think of my son as a father. That makes us family.” He knelt down and grasped Raphael’s chin. “Let me tell you. You’re just as disappointing as he is.”_

_“Your reputation’s not exactly impressive either. I heard you got defeated by shadowhunters, who are barely out of their teens.”_

_Asmodeus laughed darkly then Raphael felt the force of a fist impacting directly with his cheek._

_“Look at that. You already forced me to stoop to such barbaric human actions. Now, here is what is going to happen. You’re a disgusting little parasite, but you possess immortality. I’m going to take what I need of it, just like I would have done to your father. And when I have finished taking what I need, I’ll summon my son here to watch as I drain the last of your life away before I use that power to kill him as well.”_

_“He’s stronger than you are.”_

_“He’s nothing than a stain on this universe.”_

_“He is a good man, and he will destroy you.”_

_Asmodeus snapped his fingers and suddenly chains appeared slamming Raphael into the wall and holding his body in place. “I need you alive while I drain you, but I do not need you whole,” Asmodeus warned._

_Even without needing to breath, the feeling of chains tugging at his neck was not pleasant. “I take it back. Magnus will not destroy you. He won’t get the chance because I’m going to rip you apart before you can ever call him here.”_

_Asmodeus summoned a dagger to his hand. “Silly naive child. I’ll teach you exactly how to rip someone apart.”_

_That was the first time Asmodeus sawed off one of his arms._

Raphael jumped as an arm wrapped around his shoulder. “Raphael, come back to us.”

Both Magnus and Alec were staring at him. Looks of anger and concern flickered across their faces. Magnus as tactile as ever was just short of moving Raphael into his lap again while Alec hovered just to the side of them. 

“Why don’t you take a break,” Magnus suggested. 

“No, no, I need to finish this.”

_For as painful as having limbs sawed off was, having them stitched back on and then enduring the pain of nerves, muscles, and bones attaching themselves back together wasn’t exactly fun either. For the first few days that was all Asmodeus did. He showed up, carved something off, waved it grotesquely in Raphael’s face, and then stitched it back on with some magic once he grew bored. Every other day, he would allow Raphael some blood, it was always foul tasting and always in small amounts. It was always followed back the “draining” as Asmodeus referred to it which left Raphael as exhausted as the torture. Each day when his body knit itself back together, Raphael searched for a way to escape._

_Then one day Asmodeus returned muttering to himself about overconfident shadowhunters and bad deals. “We’ll need to work faster,” he announced. “There’s room for a new leader now, and I can’t think of anyone better for the job than myself.” It was as if he thought Raphael would care. He got more creative with the punishments after that. Practicing new spells on the vampire and then leaving him to heal himself, always keeping him just short of actually dying. Then came the day that Asmodeus decided to try cutting off all four limbs with a new spell of his._

_The first cut caused Raphael to gasp in shock. It was clean, dividing his arm from the socket in one quick movement._

_“Let’s see…now the other arm, or should we go with a leg?”_

_“How about your head?” Raphael grunted._

_“You’re never helpful.”_

_The cut to his leg caused him to release a small choked noise. The third cut caused him to bite through his lip. The final cut brought out a scream that Raphael barely heard as he fell into unconsciousness. Unfortunately, unconsciousness never lasted long, and Asmodeus woke him in time for the usual stitching. This time, Asmodeus stitched him together by hand, enjoying the sensation of jabbing the needle through Raphael’s broken flesh while using a spell to help speed up the recovery so he could play more later. It was when Asmodeus was working on his legs that Raphael, in a desperate act, made the decision to escape then or to kill himself. With an arm that had only half strength in it, he grabbed for one of the torture blades Asmodeus had carelessly tossed to the side, and as Asmodeus tied off the last stitch, Raphael threw himself forward with the last of his strength, managing to plunge the blade firmly into Asmodeus’s skull. Asmodeus fell to the side with the blade still sticking out of his eye socket. It wouldn’t kill him, but it would slow him down temporarily._

_Raphael dragged himself from the dungeon. Portal. He needed a portal. Crawling on his numb limbs, he made his way through hell. He was on the search for one thing only: a completely wild demon with no hint of humanity left in it, and to his luck, those were found in abundance in hell. He found his way to the group he needed. A handful of them had found one of the openings into the mundane world and were gleefully squirming through it on the hunt for something tasty. Without thinking of the possible consequences, Raphael launched himself at the last one and clung to it as it pulled its way into the land of the living._

_The scent of a New York alleyway had never been more pleasant, and Raphael would have cried for joy if he had that emotional range and if the demon had not immediately turned back around to attack him. Luckily, fate seemed to have once more intervened as he was quickly rescued by none other than the second best person he could have found._

“You know the rest,” he told them. Well, Alec knew what had happened since that morning, and Raphael was sure he would fill Magnus in on everything else since Raphael had been out of it for the most part. 

Both men were silent for several long moments until a knock sounded at the door. “Alec?”

“That’s Jace bringing you more blood,” Alec told him before he could panic. “I’ll just take care of that.” 

“Don’t tell him. No one else needs to know the details.”

Alec nodded. “It’ll stay between us.”

Magnus was clutching at Raphael’s hands. “None of this would have happened to you if not for me.”

“Don’t say that.”

“It’s true.”

“You don’t know that, and it doesn’t matter. It’s not your fault.”

“No one is ever going to hurt you again, even if I have to kill every demon in hell.”

“I know I’m safe.” As safe as he could be anyway.

Alec had slipped through the door not allowing Raphael to catch more than the briefest glimpse of blond, but he could hear the soft murmurs on the other side.

“How is he?”

“He’s recovering,” Alec replied vaguely. “Thanks for handling this so well.”

“I’ve asked more of you in the past. Consider this a very small amount of my paying you back.”

“We’re parabatai. There is no owing between us.”

“You say that now, but not when I need you and Magnus to go on double dates with me and Clary.” 

Raphael nearly chuckled at that causing Magnus to look at him curiously. “Your husband is defending his right to not endure double dates.”

“Couples cooking classes have really not gone well with us,” Magnus admitted.

“There’s no owing in life or death situations. How’s that?” Alec asked. “How are the others?”

“Everyone’s on board. Keep him here. If he wants to wander around the institute, everyone knows to leave him be. Magnus is staying as well, isn’t he?”

“You knew Magnus was here?”

“He almost plowed over us to get to you. We didn’t have a chance to say a word to him unless you count pointing him toward your bedroom.”

“Magnus is staying. I want constant guards outside these two rooms. If possible, only people in the …”

“The ‘mostly trust’ group. I know,” Jace confirmed. “Clary’s spoken with Luke as well. She didn’t give him any details, but his pack is already gathering to help us as well. What do you want us to say to the vampires?” 

“Keep Raphael’s name out of it until he’s ready, but I want them on call should we need backup at the institute.”

“You’ve got it. Text me if you need anything else.”

“I should say something to…”

“Later. You should be in there with them for now. Let me handle everything else.”

“Thank you.”

When Alec returned holding more of the blood, Raphael stared him down. “You’re overreacting.”

Alec crossed the room and handed the mug to Magnus, who started situating himself to better help Raphael drink.

“A greater demon is trying to attack two of the heads of the Downworlders Council. From a strictly political view, it is required that all factions aid in protection. The fact that the two people being threatened are part of my family just means that I won’t hesitate to call in the reinforcements as well.”

“I’m not the head of anything any longer.”

“No, but you’re still the son of a council leader, and like it or not, that means you still get extra security detail in these situations,” Magnus added. 

“Two council leaders,” Alec corrected, and that definitely caught Magnus’s attention. 

“Did I miss something?”

“Just your husband apparently adopting me during the one day I’ve been in his care,” Raphael groaned. 

“Hurry up and drink your blood. It’s about time for you to take some more of that pain potion,” Alec lectured.

Okay. That was effective. He began sipping the blood, but he couldn’t ignore the looks the two men were exchanging over his head. 

“Magnus, have you eaten?” Alec asked suddenly.

“No, not yet,” he admitted. “I can just summon…”

“You should save your magic. I’ll get you something edible from the kitchen and be back in a few minutes.”

“You two are horrible at being subtle,” Raphael pointed out. 

“Yeah well, you and I need to talk.”


	7. Late Night Chats

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Just another filler chapter while I work up the plot in the next one. Magnus gets to talk through some things with both Raphael and Alec.

“And what would you like to talk about, Papa?” Raphael asked with forced calm. The way Magnus’s knowing eyes bore into him made him feel like a teenager again. 

“There are many things I would like to talk about. How you are really doing for one thing? I know you do not always enjoy discussing personal matters in front of others. Now that it’s only the two of us.”

“And seven cats.”

“And seven cats,” Magnus admitted.

“I’m fine,” Raphael replied after a moment.

“Hm…and how many times do you think you’ve had said that today? You have been missing for two years and during that time you have been tortured in a horribly brutal manner. No one would be fine after something like that.”

“Maybe I’m not, but there’s nothing I can do about that right now other than just…deal with it.”

“There are spells.”

“No, you know I can’t do that. You yourself have called that a bad choice in the past.”

“This is different.” Magnus did not condone the use of spells that messed with memories, but after hearing the details of the torture, he wanted to at least make the memories of Raphael’s time with Asmodeus hazy. He would never dare to do so though without Raphael’s permission first.

“You only think it’s different this time because you’re feeling biased.” 

“Of course, I am. You are my son, Raphael. What parent doesn’t want to make things easier for their children?” 

“Then trust me. I can handle this without you altering my memories. I need to do it.”

“And if you need help?”

“Then I will ask for it,” Raphael promised and took a few more sips of the blood. His stomach was already full though he was far from what he used to consume in one day. 

“Take your time,” Magnus encouraged immediately noticing his problem. 

“What else did you want to discuss?”

“What did you mean earlier when you said no longer being a head of the council?”

Raphael tapped his nails against the halfway empty mug of blood. At least he had enough strength to hold it himself finally. “Lily is the head now.”

“She would step aside if you …”

“I don’t want her to,” Raphael quickly protested. “I don’t want them to even know I’m back yet.”

“Raphael…”

“I just need time to process everything without being asked if I am fine or having to tell the story over. Actually,” he placed the mug on the end table. “Could you tell them?”

“You want me to fill them in? Give them the details and then keep them away from you until they no longer have questions and you feel better recovered?”

“Yes.”

“Raphael…”

“What parent wouldn’t want to make things easier on their child?” Raphael echoed from earlier. “This would make things easier. Please don’t make me endure their emotions.”

“You never have been good at the emotional things. It’s one of my few qualities you didn’t inherit.”

"But you'll do it?"

"I've always found it difficult to tell you no. I'll handle the explaining, but you're going to have to see people one day. You can't stay locked away forever."

"My personality would allow me to be a highly successful hermit, just so you know."

Before Magnus could argue with that, Alec returned with a tray of food that he had bribed off of one of the better cooks in the institute. “I hope you don’t mind sharing.”

“Didn’t you eat earlier?” Raphael asked.

“Yes, but Clary was the cook.”

“Ah,…” Magnus raised an eyebrow. “May I ask who cooked this.”

“No one I consider to be a sibling or a sibling-in-law.”

Magnus smiled. “Should be fine then.”

They ate and talked and acted generally like nothing had changed since the last time the three of them had shared a meal together two years prior. Everything was fine, and finally after Alec had yawned four times, Magnus decided it was time for them to call it a night. Raphael was so exhausted by that point as well that he didn’t protest the fact that Magnus left the door connecting the two rooms just slightly ajar. 

As soon as he and Alec were alone in their room he encased them in a little bubble to keep their voices from traveling and then launched himself into Alec’s arm clinging to him with nearly the same urgency as earlier.

“He’s back.”

“He’s back,” Alec confirmed. 

“My father tortured my child for two years just because of his connection to me.” 

“But he survived. He’s recovering, and we are going to keep him safe from now on. We are also going to find a way to get rid of your father once and for all…if that is what you want to do.”

“I want to make him pay, and then I want to put him away so that he can never bother us again.”

Alec nodded tightening his hold on his husband as much as he could without causing him any discomfort. “I know how hard this is for you, but trust me when I say that you are not handling this alone. You have me, and you have many others willing to do whatever it takes.”

“I noticed that. Speaking of which, want to tell me what has happened between you and Raphael since this morning?”

Alec smirked. “We talked. We came to some realizations, freaked out over them, came to grips with everything, and then we went on with life.” 

“That’s good because I’m not so sure I can let go of him so soon, even if we do lock Asmodeus up quickly.”

“I thought he might be staying with us for awhile when his room made an appearance in our apartment.”

“And you don’t mind?”

“Of course not.” Alec said then yawned loudly. 

“Oh, poor thing, you must be exhausted.” Magnus snapped his fingers instantly changing them into their sleeping clothes. While he usually liked to reunite in a bit more exciting way, he knew that neither one of them had the energy right then. He tugged his husband toward the bed and climbed in beside him. 

“I missed you.”

Alec smiled and leaned forward to kiss Magnus. “I missed you too,” he said and tugged him until they were curled around each other. 

“I’m never going on another overnight business trip again.”

Alec bit back a chuckle. Magnus said that every time he returned, but there were too many people who needed his help and he was a softie. Alec knew better than to point that out, so he just hummed in acknowledgment. “Whatever you want is fine with me,” he said and drifted off with the comforting feeling of his husband in his arms. 

***  
The screams woke them both only a few hours later. Alec, who recognized them immediately, leapt out of the bed concerned but not panicking. Magnus, on the other hand, was frantic as he rushed toward the sound. He raced into the connecting bedroom, lighting every light as soon as he entered and looking for any sign of Asmodeus. Alec quietly brushed past him with a potion in one hand. With his free hand, he gently shook Raphael awake. 

“Wake up, Raphael.”

Once again, Raphael shot up, but unlike the time before he gained coherence a little faster. “Alec?”

“Yes.”

Raphael grimaced. “I am so tired of this.”

“They’re getting better. You were asleep four hours this time and woke on the first attempt.” He handed over the potion. “Drink now and let Magnus fuss over you.”

Raphael’s eyes darted over to where Magnus was standing near by observing them. “Hi, Papa, sorry to wake you.”

“Night terrors?”

“Something like that,” Raphael admitted since there was no way of hiding anything at that point. 

Alec took the empty bottle and bit back another yawn. Four hours had not been enough to recover from the day he had had. 

“Darling, go back to bed. I have everything covered now,” Magnus assured.

Showing just how tired he was, Alec didn’t protest at all. Instead he absently gave Raphael’s knee a comforting squeeze before standing. Then he paused long enough to give Magnus another kiss on his way back to bed. “Call me if you need me,” he said, addressing both of them and wandered back out of the room. 

Magnus stared Raphael down once Alec had left.

“Please don’t ask if I want to talk about it.”

“How about a story then?”

Raphael rolled his eyes. “I’m not fifteen anymore.”

“No, but you know I have the best stories, and most of them are not appropriate for the ears of children anyway.”

Raphael smirked. “Fine, but only one where you get banned from some country for your chaos. I don’t need to hear anymore about anything to do with your love life.”

Magnus plopped down onto the bed. “Only banishments? What about the time I invented a new form of poker?” 

“Just nothing with romance.” 

“As you wish.” 

And yeah, he probably did deserve the pillow he got to the face for that one.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The ending is a Princess Bride reference. 
> 
> Accepting suggestions for things you would like to see in filler chapters. Any particular fluff you want? Hit me up with some prompts, and I'll see what I can work into the fic. :) 
> 
> Coming up next time: Raphael leaves the room. Uncle Jace moments.


	8. Uncle Jace

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Alec has an idea to make Raphael stronger. They just have to visit Jace first. 
> 
> *****  
> Filler Chapter

He fell asleep to Magnus’s story and woke the next morning to Alec sitting in the nearby chair with his feet propped on the bed. 

“Where’s Papa?” 

“Good morning to you too. Magnus is currently redoing all the wards on this place. He wanted to wait for you to wake up first, but his own paranoia got to him.”

“He’s not good at just sitting around,” Raphael confirmed. 

Alec sat up and stretched. He reached over to where a tray filled with bottles had been placed on the end table. “Potions first.” 

Raphael downed what was handed to him. “How long was I out?”

“You made it a whole six hours this time,” Alec replied. “Shirt off, so I can redo your bandages.”

“We could wait for Magnus to come in here and do his snap and done thing.”

“Except he needs to reserve all the magic he can while Asmodeus is out there, and I happen to be an expert at bandaging.”

Raphael couldn’t really argue with that. He allowed Alec to change his bandages and managed to hide any signs of pain as he did, even if Alec was giving him an expression that made it clear he knew he was faking it. 

“I thought you might want to get out of bed today and try walking around.”

“Are you also going to recommend that I get some fresh air and sunlight because I feel the need to remind you that traditional methods of recovery don’t typically work on the undead.”

“What if I told you I could make them work? At least partly.”

Raphael, frustrated already by his situation, snapped. “What are you saying, Lightwood?” 

Alec winced just briefly, and Raphael immediately felt the not so familiar feeling of regret for his snarkiness. “My apologies. Alec,” he corrected. 

Alec shook his head. “No, it’s fine. I know how frustrating recovering is. I prefer Alec though.” And Raphael figured there was some story behind that that he had missed during his captivity. “And technically, Lightwood’s not my name any longer.”

“You took Magnus’s name?” 

“We hyphenated. I only use Lightwood for official business,” Alec confirmed. “And typically it’s only people who dislike me and my relationship who tend to omit the Bane part from my name..”

Raphael nodded. “I’ll stick with Alec then. Maybe a few creative titles every now and then.”

Alec laughed. “Those are fine with me. Now though, I think I might have a way to make you feel at least slightly better. I need you to trust me, and I need you to not tell anyone about this.”

“You realize how wrong that sounds, don’t you?”

Alec rolled his eyes. “Just promise not to tell anyone.”

“What about Magnus?”

“He knows,” Alec assured. 

“Then trust me.”

Alec stood and held out a hand to help Raphael up. “We’re going to have to visit Jace.” 

“Are we tormenting him?” It wasn’t as fun as picking on Simon, but it would still work.

“No, we have to ask a favor, so try to be nice, and it’s a big favor so wait at least a week before you go back to tormenting him.”

“I suppose that’s possible.” 

He let himself be pulled off the bed, but he insisted on walking on his own power after that. Alec agreed but kept pace with him in order to help him if needed. 

“Is there a reason Jace couldn’t meet us in your room?” he asked while leaning against the hallway wall to convince his legs to work. 

“I thought you might want to get out for awhile while no one was around.”

He had a point.

“And did you happen to tell Magnus about this field trip?”

Alec scratched his neck. “Not exactly. We didn’t discuss where it would be happening. Just when. He told us to go ahead and start without him if he hadn’t finished by then since we have to match with Jace’s schedule.” 

“You knew he wouldn’t want me to leave the bed,” Raphael pointed out.

“I’m just helping you get out for awhile before he decides to lock you away.” 

Alec was right. Magnus could be overprotective. 

Jace was waiting alone in his room just as Alec had requested. He looked shocked when Raphael stepped inside along with his parabatai, but he managed to quickly recover. 

“Hey, Raphael. It’s good to have you back.” At least Jace could be counted on to not go all emotional on Raphael. 

“Hello,…Jace.” Raphael cringed as he realized that he couldn’t call Jace by any surnames and actually had to refer to him by his first name as if they were close. What was the guys’ surname again? 

“I take it this is not just a personal call.”

“I need a favor,” Alec started. Jace raised an eyebrow. 

“You know you don’t need to ask. Seriously, how many times are we going to go over this?”

“This is a big favor.” A sighed. “I need you to give him some of your blood.”

“And I already told you when you were ‘hypothetically’ asking me about that, that in this case, it would be fine.” 

“What?!?” Raphael exclaimed. “Why would you want me to drink from him?” Raphael motioned towards Jace with displeasure. 

“Hey! I’ll have you that there are probably thousands of people who would want to get some of me.”

Raphael studied him. “I guess you have symmetrical features which people could find appealing,” he admitted. 

“At least you noticed.”

“Well, I’m asexual not blind to aesthetics. Anyway, you,” he said addressing Alec. “What is your point in having me eat your parabatai? I didn’t realize you were that tired of him.”

“You two are impossible,” Alec sighed. “You’re not going to drain him. You just need to take a little of his blood. Just enough to make it work.”

“I’m not sure of the exact amount,” Jace admitted. “But it didn’t seem to take much the last time.”

“Could someone fill me in?” 

“My blood’s different than other shadowhunters. It can make you a daylighter if you drink it,” Jace explained as succinctly as possible.

“What?” 

“That’s what happened to Simon,” Jace explained. “It’s only my blood that can do it. Which is why we can’t go around telling every vampire about the side effects. I don’t particularly want to become a permanent feeding bag. 

Raphael was stunned. Sure, he had never believed that Simon was entirely oblivious as to how he had suddenly gained the ability to walk in the sun, but he had never thought the cure would be so simple. 

“You’re sure about this?” Raphael asked looking between the two of them. “Even if I’ve missed some things, I’m still certain I know how most Shadowhunters feel about vampires.” 

“We’re not most Shadowhunters, obviously. What about you? Don’t you want to go out during daylight hours again? I know the nightlife is great and all, but think of all the brunch places that close well before sundown.”

“I can’t believe this is your parabatai.”

Alec nudged Raphael toward Jace. “Play nice.”

Jace helped open his arms. “Bring it in, man.” 

“You have been spending too much time with Simon.”

He still moved forward. “Just give me your wrist or something,” he muttered. 

Jace shrugged but offered his wrist. Raphael took hold of it and after a moment of hesitation bit down. He felt the difference immediately. There was a power in the blood that made his head spin. It was unlike anything he had ever experienced before. He took just a bit, but it was enough to cause him to feel drunk. An arm wrapped around his waist, and when his head cleared he realized Alec was supporting both him and Jace, who had gone incredibly pale from just the small amount of blood loss.

“Low blood pressure,” Raphael said.

“What?” Jace asked woozily.

“People with naturally low blood pressure tend to faint at a higher rate than average when their blood is suctioned out,” he explained. 

He removed Alec’s hold on him. “Take care of him,” he instructed and took a seat in the chair nearby. Alec lifted Jace and moved him to the bed. 

“This works better than tequila,” Jace mumbled as Alec got him sorted. “How are you? Do you think it worked?”

Raphael could feel a weird warmth flooding through his veins. “I think so,” he admitted. “Maybe.” 

“Simon didn’t know until he was attacked,” Jace pointed out.

“I’m older. I know what blood is supposed to taste like, and yours…yours is-”

“I know. Every part of me is fantastic.”

Raphael was quiet for a moment. “Thank you for this, even if it doesn’t work. The fact that you tried is more than I would have ever expected.”

“We protect our family in whatever ways we can,” Jace reminded him. 

There were that phrase again. Raphael supposed he should have gotten used to it, but it was one thing hearing it from Magnus, Catarina, Ragnor and even from Alec. It was another thing to realize he had been accepted by Alec’s family as well. 

Before he could respond, Magnus was swooping into the room. “I see I forgot to pin down the location of this event.”

“I thought he might want a chance to stretch his legs.”

Magnus rolled his eyes. “Just how overprotective do you three think I am?”

“I recall an actual barrier bubble that floated around Alec that time the shadowhunters started getting some kind of magical flu,” Jace pointed out.

“He insisted on working and exposing himself to all of you sick people!”

“Whatever you say, man.”

“Alexander, am I that bad?”

Alec chuckled. “It’s not a bad thing,” he insisted. “You just like to keep us safe, and maybe sometimes your methods are a bit-.”

“Dramatic,” Raphael supplied. “Like all of you.”

Magnus waved a hand. “As if you didn’t inherit all of that yourself.

“Did not.”

“It’s true. He’s more of a realist like me,” Alec teased. 

“Oh yeah! Alec is a stepdad now!” Jace announced as he connected the dots. “That’s amazing. You know,” Jace cocked his head to the side. “It does strangely fit. He gets the over-dramatic flair from Magnus along with his fashionable clothing, but he gets the lack of emotional range and the all black wardrobe from Alec. He gets the snark from both of you.”

Raphael buried his face in his hands, mortified that the family joke had spread beyond the three of them. It was going to be a thing now. It was going to get to Simon which meant he was going to have to murder Simon if he ever wanted peace, and then there would be a war. He was exhausted just thinking about it. 

“Does that make me an uncle now?” Jace continued on, oblivious to Raphael’s turmoil. “I always wanted to be an uncle.”

“This family is ridiculous,” Raphael muttered, as Magnus and Jace suddenly got onto the topic of family photos for the Christmas cards.

Thankfully, Alec saved him again. “Magnus, darling, why don’t you help Raphael to test and see if the blood worked while I take Jace to eat something to recover from the blood loss.”

Magnus nodded. “Excellent plan.” He turned to Raphael. “Ready to see if you can walk in the sun?”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The original idea for this chapter ended up being longer than originally intended when written out, and since I wanted to post on time, I decided to break it into pieces. 
> 
> Still open to suggestions or requests. 
> 
> Coming up next: Magnus and Raphael check out his new abilities. Asmodeus leaves a calling card.


	9. Step into the Sun, Flee the Darkness

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> This is a short chapter, but I hope everyone will enjoy it. I'm going back into the plot now.

He wasn’t ready. He found that out right in front of the door when his heart suddenly felt as if it had come back to life and was trying to jump right out of his chest. Magnus was supporting him because his body was still refusing to fully cooperate. He was actually walking like the seventy plus years he was rather than the fifteen that he looked. 

“Small steps,” Magnus whispered in his ear, and Raphael was very glad that they were alone because he didn’t think he could stand anyone else seeing what a mess he had become. “I’m here. I can easily stop any problems that might occur, but we both know Alexander would never risk your safety.”

 

Raphael released a long unnecessary breath. “It has been a long time since I have felt the sun.”

“I know.” 

Raphael nodded. “I believe I am ready now.” 

“Then we will go.” Magnus opened the door revealing the bright midmorning sun, and Raphael instinctively stepped back. 

Magnus’s squeezed Raphael’s waist reassuringly. “We can wait as long as you need.”

“No, now,” Raphael insisted and forced himself forward. He shakily pulled his hand away from Magnus’s arm and reached out. It was hot but not burning. He propelled forward, wanting the warmth to sink into his skin. He had been cold for so long. He stood soaking it in. Then Magnus was guiding him to a bench directly in the sun’s path. 

He lost track of how long they had been sitting there. Both content to sit in silence. At one point he leaned against Magnus, content to fall asleep in the sunlight, and with the way Magnus leaned back it seemed he could use a nap as well. 

“Magnus!” Alec’s voice had just a hint of scolding in it. Then his hands were on Raphael’s face, one hand held Raphael’s chin still while the other rubbed in some kind of lotion. “He’s going to get a sunburn. Look at how red his nose is.”

“It’s not that easy for me to sunburn,” Raphael replied sleepily, remembering when he was little and would spend all day out in the summer sun with no consequences.

“It is when you haven’t been in the sunlight in several decades.” Alec finished rubbing in the sunscreen before capping the bottle and handing it Raphael. “You’re going to need this in the future.” Then he took a seat on Magnus’s other side. 

“Is it really burnt?” Raphael asked waking up at that.

“I think Alexander caught it just in time,” Magnus tried to assure, but he was smirking a little too much.

The three of them sat together peacefully. Raphael stared at the clouds trying to pick shapes out of them. It was the most peaceful he had felt in some time. Suddenly Magnus stiffened. “Something is knocking at the wards.”

“A threat?”

“Possibly. Get Raphael inside. I’ll check the boundaries.”

“Will it be safe?” 

“You’ll know if it’s not,” Magnus promised. 

“Actually, I think we all will,” Raphael interrupted as a flock of birds suddenly appeared overhead in the form of a familiar face before plummeting down towards them, sharp beaks ready for attack. 

Alec’s arms were around Raphael in a moment, lifting him up like a child and hurrying him inside. Magnus with throwing up magical barriers to keep them from being harmed. 

“He possessed the birds, but how did they get through,” Magnus slammed the door shut behind them. “I should have considered that.” 

“It’s not your fault,” Alec assured. Rather than putting Raphael down, he adjusted his grip to an easier hold, causing Raphael to blush fiercely when Jace, looking slightly better than before ran towards them. 

“I saw the birds. Is Asmodeus here?”

“No, he was just telling us he knows where we are.” 

“Alec, put me down,” Raphael whispered. He was used to it when it was just them. He could maybe tolerate it in front of Jace if he didn’t tease too much about it, but he doubted his reputation or pride would survive having anyone else witness just how overprotective Magnus and now Alec were of him. 

Thankfully Alec was quick to do as ask, and Raphael was firmly on the ground when Isabelle and Clary raced into the room. Both of them paused at the sight of Raphael but quickly recovered with no real questions directed toward him. Whatever Alec had told them must have worked well. 

“Is everyone safe?”

“No injuries. It was just a warning,” Alec echoed Magnus’s earlier statement. 

“I need to add another layer of barriers.”

“Will that harm you?” Alec asked. “You’ve been using a lot of magic-” 

“I can replace the cloaking wards with protective ones. He already knows where we are,” Magnus admitted.

Raphael knew Magnus was angry at his own magic failing to hide them, but he also knew it wasn’t Magnus’s fault. They needed more forces. With some hesitation, he let one word slip that he knew would get through to Magnus. 

“Papa, you’re powerful, but you’ve been doing a lot lately. You’ll kill yourself if you keep going like this. You should call Tessa for help.”

Magnus slowly nodded. “You’re right. I’ll call her, but I want you to stay out of any fighting.”

“Magnus.”

“Please. I only just got you back. I can’t risk losing you again.”

“Fine. I’ll stay out of things,” Raphael agreed. 

“Thank you. Jace, can you get some guards around the institute? Isabelle, I need you to help me find any more weak points.” 

“I’ll take a team. We’ll search the grounds.”

“Clary,-”

“New runes?”

“Yes, anything your beautiful mind can think of.”

“On it.”

The three of them hurried off to complete their tasks leaving the little family alone once more. “Alexander?” 

“Jace has this under control,” Alec assured. “Raphael, why don’t we go back to your room?” 

“As long as you promise not to stay with me.”

Alec flinched.

“You’re needed out here,” Raphael quickly explained. “You don’t have to babysit me.”

“It’s not babysitting,” Alec muttered, but he seemed to have not taken it personally. 

Alec and Magnus exchanged another of their infamous glances. “He should be fine in the bedroom. Those wards are completely impenetrable. I’ll be with the others.” 

Raphael was helped back to his room again, and he tried not to be insulted that he was being kept away like he was an actual child. Alec did spare him from being tucked in for once, though Raphael could see the instinctive nature almost kick in. 

“I know you’re annoyed.”

“Wouldn’t you be?”

“Let’s take emotions out of this and only look at it from a logical view. Would you put an injured fighter into a battle?” 

“I see what you’re doing. I am the older one.”

“Then use your older logical brain to think things out.”

“I see your point, but I don’t have to like it.”

“Very mature of you.”

It took all of his astounding maturity to resist sticking his tongue out at his stepdad. And yeah, it was weird how natural that was starting to feel. 

“I’m going to go check in with your Papa. Don’t leave this room. Please.”

“I’ll be here. I promise.”

Alec nodded approvingly and left with a nod to the cats who jumped onto the bed to join Raphael. He let out a frustrated sigh and reached for one of the many books that had been placed nearby for his entertainment. Even that caused his arm to shake. 

He was a chapter into Peter Pan when a noise sounded at the doorway. “It’s true. It’s really true then.” 

“Simon?” 

The young man entered the bedroom passing right through Magnus’s impenetrable wards that were apparently not impenetrable to friends. 

“I know he said you didn’t really want visitors, but I thought you know…you and I have a bond and…”

“Shut it…I can smell your tears from here. Leave until you get those under control.”

“C’mon man a guy can’t get a little emotional when he finds out his friend is back from the dead?”

“We’re not friends, and I wasn’t any more dead than I am now.”

“I missed your grumpy face!” Simon was heading towards him with outstretched arms that really made him want his overprotective dads to show up right then and declare it naptime or something equally ridiculous that would get Simon to go away and process his emotions anywhere else.

As if hearing his silent prayer, both Magnus and Alec appeared. Magnus gave Simon an unimpressed look. “I thought I told you Raphael didn’t want visitors.” 

Alec acted a little more forcibly, grabbing Simon by the collar and tugging him toward the doorway. “C’mon, we’ve got a job for you.”

“I thought we were all buds here.”

“Friends don’t sneak into their friend’s son’s bedroom!” Magnus hollered after them. 

“You know he’ll be back in about an hour right?” Magnus pointed out the moment the door was shut behind him. 

“As long as he’s done with the whole crying thing, I think I can tolerate a five minute visit. Now, tell me what’s happening out there. Just because I’m not fighting, doesn’t mean I want to be uninformed.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry this is short and a bit late, but I wanted to get at least a little something posted this week. This month is going to be crazy for me, but I intend to post small updates every week at least.


	10. Attack at the Institute

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Raphael is given a choice.

Raphael got the brief summary of things even with Magnus trying to gloss things over. "My darling boy, it's not something you should be worried about. Please allow me to handle this."

"I just want to be informed."

"It's better than him trying to sneak out to see for himself," Alec murmured. 

Magnus sighed. "You're right."

Alec bent down and kissed Magnus. "I'm needed out there."

"I will join you soon," Magnus replied. "Stay safe, my Alexander."

Alec nodded and after a moment of hesitation reached over and squeezed Raphael's shoulder in a silent parting. 

Magnus watched it all with amusement. "Do you mind it? I know we tease and joke, but-" 

"He's the best relationship you've ever had, and if you were going to spend eternity with anyone, I'm glad it's him."

"And you don't mind that we consider you a part of our family?"

"I have had many years to adjust to the idea of you as my papa," Raphael assured with a smile.

"And Alexander? He can be just my husband to you. He does not have to be more."

Raphael knew what he was saying. Alec could just be Magnus's husband. He could have no actual connections to Raphael beyond that. There was no need for him to be stepdad or anything else, but Raphael knew what he felt. 

"Is this between us?"

Magnus nodded. "Of course."

"I would like to consider Alec a part of my family too."

Magnus's smile was so bright that Raphael wasn't sure he had ever seen him happier, and all it had taken was a few words. Granted, they had not been the easiest words for Raphael to say even if he meant them, but still, Raphael knew what family meant to Magnus. He was happy he was able to be a part of his.

Magnus finally gave in and filled Raphael in on the details letting him know their plans of action and where everyone was going to be. Then he had very reluctantly tucked Raphael into bed and left to go back to the battle preparations. 

However, Raphael wasn’t alone for very long as Simon slipped back into the room. 

“Alec didn’t drag you far enough I see,” Raphael muttered and pulled himself up. 

“Oh please, we both know we’re friends,” Simon replied while taking a seat.  
Raphael took a moment to study him. Not much about Simon had changed. His hair, his glasses, even his strange t-shirts were still the same. However, there was just the slightest tiredness to his eyes that revealed that during Raphael’s time away, Simon had grown up, if only ever so slightly.

“You always bring the drama,” Simon remarked, and Raphael was relieved to find no tears in his eyes. 

“Well, I am Magnus’s son. What do you expect?” 

Simon chuckled. “Am I one of his sons too? Does that make us brothers?”

Raphael really wasn’t proud of the twinge of jealousy that erupted at the first question. Magnus liked to take in downworlders. Everyone knew it. Raphael though liked to think that he was special. Magnus was a mentor to the others. He was a doting uncle or a protective older brother. He was Papa only to Raphael, and until some really special kids came along that was how Raphael planned to keep things.

“You’re more like one of the stray cats,” Raphael said while petting one. The cats only looked slightly offended by his comment. 

“I would ask how you’ve been, but…,” Simon trailed off. 

“I’ve already heard about you as well, so we can skip the catching up part of things." 

They sat awkwardly for a few moments until Simon seemed to remember something. “Oh yeah, there’s this show you’ve got to see. You’ll love it. It’s totally your style. Hold on, I’ll get my tablet!” 

That was how Raphael ended up squeezed on the bed between seven cats and Simon while trying to pay attention to a pirate show as it played on Simon’s tablet. He had to admit that it was a good show. He didn't even mind Simon's babbling throughout the show, even going so far as to reply on occasion. it would have been considered a pretty good time by most. However, he was too distracted by what was happening elsewhere in the institute to focus fully on the plot which was why he wasn’t startled at all when the door to his room opened and Alec stepped inside. Simon, however, jumped clear off the bed when Alec announced his presence with an intentional cough. 

“You’re already dating my sister. Do you really have to make moves on my stepson too?” Alec’s tone was far from amused, but Raphael could easily see how much fun he was having. 

“It’s not what it looks like-I wasn’t-We weren’t-it’s a really good show, man!” Simon jumped to his feet as he rambled. His hands were held in the air in the sign of surrender. “Hey, wait! Stepson?”

Alec shot a nervous glance at Raphael as if trying to see if he was crossing a line. Raphael grinned back. 

"Alec's married to my papa. That makes him my stepdad," Raphael pointed out.

“Really. Always a step behind,” Alec teased, with a much gentler tone than before. “Izzy’s looking for you.”

“Is she?” Simon brightened immediately. 

“She’s waiting for you in the lab.”

“Right! So, amigo, why don’t you keep my tablet for now, and I’ll get it back later.” Simon said already rushing out the door. Alec grabbed hold of him just before he could leave.

“Make sure you two stay close to the group and watch each other’s backs.”

Simon nodded. “I’ll keep her safe.”

“Keep yourself safe too.”

When Simon was gone, Raphael expected Alec to go through what had become their usual routine: check bandages, give blood and potions, and ask if he wanted anything. Instead, Alec’s eyes flickered to the wards as if ensuring them. 

“He’s coming isn’t he?”

“He’s not alone,” Alec admitted. “We’re not sure the barriers will hold.”

“I should fight.”

“You should stay here.”

“Alec!” Jace’s voice called from the hallway.

“Go on. I’ll stay here,” Raphael promised. 

It took only a few moments until the wards were trembling. Raphael could feel the enemy trying to force through the barriers. The cats’ ears were perked as they looked around for what was causing the strange sensations. 

There was a piercing sound followed by a long second of silence. Then all chaos broke out. He could hear the sounds of fighting filling the institute. 

_It’s a shame really, how many will die for you_ Asmodeus’s voice filled the bedroom making Raphael's body go cold.

“You’re not here. You cannot get in here,” Raphael replied. 

_You’re right. I’m not there. I’m not even at the institute. Those are my friends you see._

Raphael could imagine just what kind of “friends” he had sent. “Are you too afraid to come yourself?” Raphael taunted. “You know we will win this.”

_Silly little boy. That will not work on me. I always see my plans through. Now, come to me or see them die for you._

“They can beat whatever you’ve sent,” Raphael replied. "They are strong."

_Are you certain of that?_

Magnus screamed, and Raphael flung himself from the bed. He stumbled over to the doors and was about to step through them when a strong force repelled him back. Magnus had done a thorough job on the protective spells. Both entrances to the bedrooms were also locked to keep Raphael within the safe zone. 

Isabelle screamed Simon's name, and Raphael pounded a fist against the door. Even if he had been up to full strength, it would have done no good. "Stop this!" he shouted.

_I will stop it if you do as I say._

Through the door, Raphael could hear Alec shouting orders, but he could also hear the slight panic in his tone. Alec did not panic in battles. Something was wrong. Raphael could smell shadowhunter blood mixing with demon blood. Caught in the middle of it all, he could smell Magnus's blood. Asmodeus was right. How many would die because of him?

“What do I have to do?” 

_Come back. That is all._

“And If I don’t?”

_You can hear them screaming. You can smell their blood. They are losing this fight, and if you do not come to me, I will come there. I will do to my son what I did to you. I will tear each limb off and see if his reattach the ways yours do. I doubt they will. I will kill each person he values, and then I will make him watch as I take out the heart of his lover. He will lose everything for you. I will keep him alive until he hates you for costing him everything, and I will keep him alive until he begs me for death to return to his loved ones._

“And if I come? Will you leave them alone?”

_If you come, I will call back my army. I will leave my son to live his life, and I will never again bother him._

“But why me?”

_Knowing your death will harm Magnus is enough. Allow me to cause him a slight pain, and you will save him from a much worse fate. Or will you really let them all die for you?_

Raphael flinched as Clary released an ear shattering scream. 

_Decide soon, or I will bring more people into this. Catarina, Madzie-_

“Stop! I’ll come! Just tell me how.”

_I cannot enter the room, but you can leave it through a portal. It’s that simple._

The portal appeared, and Raphael shakily began to make his way to it. The cats hissed in warning, but Raphael ignored them. 

“Call off your demons first,” Raphael said as he stopped just in front of the swirling passage. 

The noises in the hallway started to die out, and Raphael could hear shouts of shadowhunters confirming retreats. 

_Now step through the portal._

Raphael drew a shaky breath and before he could think it through, he stepped through the portal and straight into hell.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Another short one, but I really wanted to focus on the next chapter. 
> 
> Coming up next time:  
> Magnus is not happy.


	11. Inspire an army

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> It's the ripple before the storm.

“They’re retreating!” Magnus could hear the shouts sound as the flood of demons began to peel back. His barriers had held in most places. They had even disintegrated a few of the demons who had made the first attempts through. However, there was only so much magic one person could control, and his energy had eventual given out. Then it had fallen to the combined team of shadowhunters, werewolves, and vampires to hold off the attacks. 

“I don’t see Asmodeus,” Luke shouted. 

“He’s not here,” Magnus replied. He had been searching for him throughout the fight, but he was nowhere to be found. Magnus knew it was the only thing saving them at the moment. The magic had drained him, and he had to clutch to the wall to keep himself upright. His knees threatened to give out at any second, but he couldn’t rest. Not yet. Magnus was too experienced to think the demons were retreating out of fear.

“Something is wrong.” Alexander was looking at him with that oh so wise look that meant he was thinking the same thing. Something very bad had happened, and Magnus had a strong idea of what that was. 

“Alexander,-”

His husband was already rushing toward him. Blood trickled from a set of shallow scrapes across Alec’s shoulder, but otherwise he was unharmed. 

“Magnus, you should sit.”

“I need to see him first. I have to know he’s safe.”

Alec nodded. “Let me help you. Jace!”

“We’ve got it covered.”

Alec lifted Magnus up and carried him back to their rooms. It was reassuring to see that none of their own had been killed. The few serious injuries were already being treated by the numerous healers on hand, and it looked like except for some broken furniture, there would be no signs of the fight left. However, there was still a sinking feeling in Magnus’s stomach. 

“Something feels off.”

“Whatever happens, we will handle it.”

Alec tugged at the door, and the magic hit Magnus immediately, confirming his fear. “A blood portal. Alexander, if he convinced Raphael to leave then-”

“Raphael wouldn’t...would he?”

“If he thought we were losing then I have little doubt he would sacrifice himself. Oh my dear boy, my stupid selfless boy, what was he thinking?” 

Magnus could feel himself breaking. He had only just gotten his son back and now he was gone again. There was no need for him to actually look. The barriers were telling him the story along with the many unhappy cats suddenly surrounding him. 

“Asmodeus will really kill him this time.”

“He won’t have the chance. We’re going to march straight into hell and kill him. Then we’re going to bring Raphael back here. You can even ground him to make sure he doesn’t get himself into trouble again.”

Magnus let out a weak chuckle that evolved into painful sobs. His whole body was shaking even as Alec clutched him to his chest. 

“It’s okay. It’s okay,” Alec repeated in his ear. Eventually the sobs died out until Magnus could only draw in shaky breaths.

“I need my son.” 

Alec brushed at his eyes. “We’re going to rescue him. We’re going to end all of this, and then we will finally have a whole day acting like a normal family without any danger whatsoever. Maybe we can even get two days in a row.”

Magnus nodded, quickly pulling himself together in a practiced routine. “Right. No time for tears. I have to work. Go check on the others. Do what you have to do.”

“Magnus, no magic. Not yet. Call Cat. Have her help you. You need a moment to recover.”

“I don’t have a moment.”

“You’ll need your magic when we charge in to get Raphael.”

He had a point. “I’ll call her.”

“And I’ll assemble an army.”

The moment Alec left, Magnus sent off a message to Catarina and then began planning everything he would need to force his way into hell and kill the man who had dared to steal his son. He worked in a frenzy, barely noting Catarina’s arrival. Barely able to push out of his haze long enough to greet his beloved Madzie, he managed to hug her while still clutching to a spell book he had summoned. 

“We will get Raphael back,” Catarina promised, and Magnus felt his head nodding along in agreement while his mind raced with possibilities. He could feel his magic coming back, faster than ever and realized that both Madzie and Catarina had been loaning him theirs to him without his noticing. 

“You don’t have to-”

“You know Madzie and I cannot follow you into hell, but we can send our magic with you. Just thank us and get ready to save your son.”

“Thank you.”

“Good. Now tell me what your plan is.”

Magnus was just getting into the details when Alec returned. Jace, Isabelle, Clary, Simon, Luke, Maia, and Lily were right behind him. 

“Is this our army?” Magnus asked, not knowing what he had done to deserve such loyal friends.

“This is only a few of those willing to go with you,” Lily replied. “We did not know how many could go through the portal.”

“I can send as many as needed,” Catarina spoke up. “Madzie and I can open a portal together and maintain it until all of you pass through. It will take a lot of our magic, but we will have time to recover here.”

“Will it be enough?” Clary asked. “If all of us go, will we have enough people?”

“You will with our reinforcements,” Maryse Lightwood’s voice filled the room with her usual commanding nature, but for once, Magnus was relieved to hear the sound. Maryse, Lydia, and Max stepped inside the room, armed for a fight. “Twenty more came with us from Idris.”

“Mom?” Alec and Isabelle both said in surprise. 

“Rumors travel fast. I wanted to be here to help.”

“Thank you,” Magnus managed to say. 

“How long until we can go after him?” Simon blurted out, practically bouncing on his feet in his hurry. Magnus could understand the feeling. 

“It will take us a half hour to prepare the portal. Madzie and I can sustain it for an hour.”

“And with my help, you can sustain it for three,” Meliorn offered. It seemed that it was a day for dramatic entrances. 

“The Seelie are willing to help with this?” Magnus asked, not quite believing what was happening.

“Raphael has proved himself to be a loyal friend many times over,” Meliorn replied.

Catarina nodded. “I’m glad to have your help. Now, we need a space to set up the things we’ll need for such a large portal.”

“I have just the place. Follow me,” Isabelle said. 

“Everyone else, take a break. We’ll need you ready to fight,” Alec said. “And thank you for all this.”

Most of the group left Alec and Magnus alone, but Maryse hung back. “So, I heard the rumors but not the exact details,” she started. “The institute that two of my children call home was under attack and as a mother, I, of course, rushed here as soon I got word. However, I am curious to know what about this situation has inspired the same kind of loyalty in others.”

“Magnus has a lot of friends who want to help him get his son back. Not only that, but Raphael, for all that he would like to pretend the opposite, has a lot of friends himself,” Alec explained.

“It’s true then? You consider Raphael your son?” 

“I’ve raised him since he was fifteen,” Magnus replied. “He is absolutely my son.”

Maryse seemed amused as she studied her son. 

“What’s that look for?” Alec asked.

“It would have been nice to know I was a grandmother.”

Alec choked on his own spit, and Magnus thumped his husband’s back in an attempt to to keep him alive. 

“Not nice, Maryse,” he said around a grin. Allowing himself to finally hope that things were going to work out. If somehow Asmodeus got through him, Raphael would still have hundreds of people willing to do whatever it took to save him. Also, Magnus had a weird image of Maryse marching into hell and demanding her grandson back that would not get out of his head, especially when he imagined Raphael’s confused expression. 

He started laughing quite loudly and was met by two concerned looks. It took him several moments to realize he might be a little hysterical. Alec wrapped his arms around him, and to his surprise Maryse reached out and squeezed his hand until he managed to calm himself. 

“From one parent to another, trust me when I say I know exactly how terrifying this is, but you have inspired an entire army of people. We will do whatever it takes to help you.”

“Thank you, Maryse.”

She nodded then stood, pausing to kiss Alec on the cheek. “I’ll give you two a few moments alone.”

They clung to each other in the quiet of the room, taking a few moments just to breathe. 

“We’re going to get our son back,’ Alec promised quietly. “Trust me.”

“Always.”

*************************

The cold dungeon in hell reminded him of Dante’s Inferno. Magnus had never liked when he read those kind of books. He called them “guilt-inducing” and then would offer Raphael a half dozen alternatives. He had had a lot of time to read though, and Dante’s trilogy had been some of the books which stuck in his mind. 

“It’s good that you came so willingly.” Asmodeus’s voice dripped with condescension. “I’ll give you a treat for doing so well.”

All Raphael wanted was his shirt back. Asmodeus had stripped it from him when he chained him up, and despite being a vampire, there was something about the cold of hell that caused him to shake uncontrollably. 

“Instead of cutting off your limbs today, let’s see which whip is your favorite. We’ll judge by which one makes your scream loudest.” Asmodeus stepped aside to reveal a wall filled with whips. Some had things tied to the ends like glass or thorns. All of them would definitely break his skin. 

“Why are you doing this?”

“I told you before. I need a bit of an immortality boost, and if your precious father is not willing then I will find my own ways to take it.” 

“You promised to leave him alone.”

“And I will, for as long as your immortality manages to hold out.” 

Raphael drew in a shaky breath. “You’re going to have long wait then.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Next chapter is going to get a little more brutal before it gets fluffy again.


	12. Rescue Mission

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> They storm hell.   
> Be warned for mentions of torture and death.

Raphael woke up on a chaise in Magnus’s apartment. The sunlight was streaming in through the window, and Raphael could hear the sounds of someone puttering around in the kitchen. He stretched slowly, surprised to find that he felt well-rested and completely uninjured. 

“Look who finally woke up,” Magnus was by his side immediately. He ran a hand through Raphael’s hair. “You must have been tired. You didn’t even make it to your room. We were going to put you to bed, but you were clinging rather tightly to that pillow.”

“What-?”

“Breakfast is ready,” Alec appeared in the doorway, dressed in one of Magnus’s robes over a pair of plain sleep pants. 

“Don’t worry. I made sure it was one of the recipes he was good at,” Magnus whispered to Raphael as if it were one of their little inside jokes. Then in a louder voice, he continued. “C’mon. You heard your dad. Time to get up.”

Raphael let himself be tugged up off the chaise and to the kitchen. 

“What is happening?”

Alec wrapped an arm around his shoulders. “Breakfast. You know, the meal we usually have first thing in the morning.”

He steered Raphael to the dining room. He and Magnus continued to talk while Raphael tried to piece together what was happening.

“Let’s eat,” Magnus announced proudly.

Raphael took one look and was sick all over the floor. On platters on the table were the heads of all their friends. They had been carefully cut apart. Some were missing parts which Raphael assumed had been used in the casserole looking dishes surrounding them. 

“Well, aren’t you hungry?” Asmodeus’s voice sounded in his ear, jerking him from the scene and back to the dungeon. “What’s the matter? Didn’t like the direction I steered your dream toward?” Asmodeus waved a goblet of blood in front of his face. “Eat up.”

Raphael licked his parched lips, and as much as he hated Asmodeus and didn’t trust him, he still drank. His body was desperate for food even after such a short torture session.

“That’s a good boy. Drink up, so we can have another round.”

Asmodeus practically shoved the few sips of blood down Raphael’s throat then tossed the goblet aside. “I believe this was the whip we decided on earlier.”

Raphael didn’t know how much time had passed since he had stepped through the portal, but then again, time could pass differently between dimensions. For all he knew, years had passed in the other realm or perhaps only a few seconds. It ah to be the latter though. If it had been years, Magnus would have already made an attempt to rescue him. Even if it was a horrible idea. Even if Raphael hoped that Magnus would just stay safely away. He knew the warlock wouldn’t rest while he knew anyone he cared about was in danger.

“I fear I’ve lost your attention. Perhaps you would prefer a few rounds of dismemberment now.”

“Why are you still torturing me? I gave you what you wanted. You’re planning on draining my immortality. Why do you need to torture me while we wait?”

Asmodeus scoffed. “Haven’t you ever done things just for the pure enjoyment of doing them?” Asmodeus reached for a small but very sharp scalpel. “Now, let’s make sure I have your attention.” He pressed the blade firmly to Raphael’s chest, and blood began to slowly trickle down Raphael’s stomach. Raphael couldn’t help but scream. “Now, all I need to do is carve here, and then we can see exactly what you’re made of. Get it?”

“How about we see what you’re made of instead?” Jace’s seraph was firmly stuck in Asmodeus’s chest. The shadowhunter grunted as he tried to jerk the blade upward. Asmodeus, however, teleported right off the blade and to the center of the room. 

“You’ll pay for that,” He drew his arms back to attack, but an arrow hit him directly in the chest. A glance in the direction that it had come from revealed Alec’s presence as well. Then Clary appeared. Isabelle, Simon, Luke, Lily, dozens of shadowhunters, vampires, and werewolves marched their way in, but Raphael only needed to see one. 

“I’m here, my boy.” Raphael recognized the voice and let himself fall back into the waiting arms as he was freed from his chains. 

******

The portal had worked, and Magnus and Alec led the army through with no hesitation. Asmodeus had been expecting them, however, and hundreds of demons were waiting the moment they stepped through. 

“Aim to kill and clear a path!” Alec ordered, firing arrows straight ahead and not stopping for anything. Magnus blasted demons out of his way and behind him, he could hear the sounds of those who had gotten by him being ripped to shred by the rest of their group. By the time they reached Asmodeus’s dungeons, they were all panting heavily and feeling the effects of the latest round of fighting.

“Let me take the lead on this one,” Jace offered. “You two stand at a distance. I’ll lure Asmodeus away while Alec backs me up. Then, Magnus, you grab Raphael. I need group B to remain here guarding the entrance. Group A be ready to follow us in and do what is needed. Ready?”

They broke into the dungeon, and Magnus had to choke back a sob at the sight of his son hanging from the chains. His old injuries had been reopened, and far too many new injuries covered his skin. Asmodeus was currently trying to dissect him, and if Jace had not moved when he did, Raphael’s whole chest would have been peeled open. 

Magnus raced to him. He cut the chains with more magical force than necessary and caught Raphael as the boy fell back into his arms. “I’m here, my boy.”

Immediately they were surrounded Isabelle’s team. They formed a protective circle around them. “Hold position,” Isabelle ordered. “Magnus, how is he?” she whispered.

“I can heal him,” Magnus replied already doing what he could to try to lessen the wounds. He wouldn’t be able to heal it all, but he could do enough to keep him safe until they could reach Catarina. 

Alec slipped through the circle to assess the situation while Asmodeus fought with Jace and seven other shadowhunters.

“Asmodeus doesn’t stand a chance,” he revealed, dropping down to meet Magnus’s eyes. “We took out too many of his demons in the institute attack. We took out more here. Even a prince of hell cannot stand up against an entire army of shadowhunters and downworlders. We can defeat him today in a way that will keep him gone for years.”

“But not forever,” Magnus whispered. 

“Maybe. Maybe not. We’re definitely going to try.”

Raphael, who had been quietly sitting up until that point, suddenly grasped at both of their arms. “Let me do it. I have to do it.”

Magnus faltered for just a moment, but then he nodded. “Take some of my strength first.”

Raphael took just enough of Magnus’s strength to get himself back on his feet and moving again. The protective barrier parted to let him pass through. 

Magnus and Alec were behind him but standing far enough away to give him space and to let him know that this fight was his. They were only there for backup. 

Jace landed a particularly powerful hit that had Asmodeus sprawled on the ground. He took one look at Raphael and stepped back. “He’s all yours.”

Raphael nodded a quick thanks. Then he peered down at Asmodeus. “Get up,” he ordered calmly. 

Asmodeus laughed and pulled himself up. “Look who thinks he’s all grown up. You really want to try this?”

“I always thought to torture someone for information was a useless practice. After all, a person can’t think clearly when they’re being tortured, so how could you trust anything they said? However, you have proved that I was wrong about one thing. You can think very clearly when being tortured. Not at first, but the longer the torture goes, the easier it gets. You gave me a very long time to think, and what I have decided is that I am not going to kill you.”

“Raphael,” Magnus whispered.

“I’m not going to kill you at first. I’m going to do something much worst to you instead.” He turned. “Alec?”

Alec blinked in surprise. “Yes?”

“What if you didn’t have to give up being a shadowhunter to be immortal?”

“You know I’ve accepted that part of things.”

“But what if you didn’t have to. Would you become immortal now if you could still be a shadowhunter?”

“Yes,” Alec replied without hesitation.

“Good. Then that’s what’s going to happen.”

Magnus let out a gasp as he caught on. “That’s brilliant.” 

“See, Asmodeus, you got sloppy during my time here. You thought I didn’t notice the things you guarded so carefully, like that crown around your head,” he said, indicating the barbed wire looking piece wrapped around the prince’s head. “All it takes is the same spell you once used to take immortality from one of our friends with a little redirection and the one device needed for the exchange.”

For the first time, Asmodeus truly looked terrified. His eyes scanned the dungeon noting all the well-guarded exits.

“Magnus,….papa.”

“I’ve got it.”

Raphael darted forward and ripped the crown off Asmodeus. Then he tossed it to Alec. “You just have to hold it,” he assured while using the last of his energy to dodge a desperate attack from Asmodeus. 

Magnus began chanting the spell which directed Asmodeus’s immortality from him to Alec, and Raphael watched with both relief and delight as Asmodeus crumbled to the ground. It wasn’t the ideal way to take his revenge. There was nothing noble or heroic about it really. They had Asmodeus outnumbered, and Raphael was waiting while the others worked to make the situation safe enough for him to go back in. Depending on who was telling the story decades later, he could come off as a complete coward. He didn’t care though. He was destroying the most dangerous thing in his life, and it didn’t matter to him how it happened as long as it happened.

Alec glowed momentarily, and after a few moments, Magnus nodded in approval. “It’s done,” he confirmed.

“Good. Could someone lend me a sword?” 

A vampire in the crowd tossed him one. Raphael clasped it and stepped forward to stand over Asmodeus.

“Let’s see if you can come back from the dead.”

He stabbed the now mortal Asmodeus through the heart with one swift move, but he refused to release his grip on the hilt until he felt hands tugging him away. “He’s dead. It’s over.” Magnus whispered in his ear while gently prying his fingers from the sword.

Alec was standing nearby staring at his own hands. Raphael had an idea of what he was feeling. He imagined it was something like when he first woke up as a vampire. It was still his body, but it was suddenly unfamiliar. 

“We need to leave,” Isabelle pointed out, pulling all of their attention back to the situation at hand. “Everyone get into formation. Move swiftly toward the portal. Make sure no one is left behind,” she easily took charge in her brother’s place allowing him to instead focus on his family. 

Raphael was already ready for Alec when he came towards them. He waited for Alec to quickly assess Magnus and then when Alec stepped towards him, he raised his arms. He didn’t care who was watching. He just wanted to go home. Alec lifted him easily, and Magnus stood walked next to them, ready to attack any threat that even dared to glanced their way.

“Papa,” Raphael whispered.

Magnus’s attention was immediately on him. “Yes, my dear one?”

“Can we go to our home now?”

“Once you get you looked over,” he promised.

“I’m finally going home."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm going to add another chapter of fluff to this and then start making side stories for it. I'll be open to taking requests for anything people might like to see.


	13. Epilogue

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The end of this story

Everything was overwhelming. His body surged with a kind of power he had never had before, and for several nerve-wracking moments, Alec was tempted just to test how far his newfound immortality would reach. It took all of his effort and Magnus’s reassuring hand on his elbow to focus his attention on their situation, and once he was focused again, he began calculating what had to be done.

They had to get out of hell. They had to gather any injured and safely make their way back to the portal. Everyone needed to be accounted for. Isabelle’s voice was a godsend. As his sister took charge, Alec turned his attention to his family as had become the pattern over the past few days.

He would be lying if he claimed he had never been afraid in battle, but he could say that seeing Raphael reach towards him the way he did was downright terrifying. He had been the big brother for years. He had comforted and protected for so long that it was a natural instinct for him. This was different though. Alec was pretty sure that this was parenthood. It had been easy enough to lift Raphael with just a strength rune, but with his new power, it was the same as lifting a baby. 

He could barely focus on Raphael and Magnus’s hushed conversation. His focus was on getting them and the rest of his family to safety as quickly as possible. Magnus’s power surging next to him was a huge comfort as well. 

Raphael’s arms hung around Alec’s neck, and his face remained pressed against Alec’s neck. “We’re almost home,” he promised him. 

They got back through the portal with little effort. The death of a prince of hell had rocked the realm, and the residents scurried to get out of their way. 

“We need to let Catarina check him over. How are you, my Alexander?” Magnus was steering them towards the other warlock as soon as they were through the portal. 

“I feel fantastic actually,” Alec replied while handing Raphael off to Magnus, who clung desperately to his son for several moments before placing him down on a chair next to Catarina. 

“I should…”

“See your siblings and the others. We’ll be here,” Magnus assured him.

*********

Alec marched off with his newfound power, looking every bit the leader Magnus had always known he was but also possessing the kind of immortality that would make Magnus worry 10% less about him every time he went patrolling with his still reckless parabatai and friends. It was definitely a sight Magnus didn’t mind staring at. 

However, for the time being, they had other things to handle including one injured son, hundreds of exhausted soldiers, and quite a bit of property damage on the institute. 

Raphael looked exhausted. His body, thinner than Magnus could ever remember seeing despite how much they had been trying to get him to eat, was awkwardly sprawled across the chair. There were shadows under his eyes, blood covered him, both his own and Asmodeus’s. 

Magnus leaned forward and took one of Raphael’s hands in both of his. “It’s finally over, my dear boy.”

“It is.”

“Now we just have to get you home.”

Raphael took in his own appearance. “I feel gross.”

“How about a clean-up spell, and then when we get home, you can soak in the spa tub for a few hours?”

“And then back to bed,” Catarina interrupted. “You’re a mess, Raphael. I’m putting you on bed-rest for the next week. Bed, bath, and a few hours on the sofa, but that’s it.”

“What about outdoors?” Raphael asked. “Sunlight and fresh air are good for healing right?”

“Sunlight?” Catarina asked with wide eyes.

“Oh yes, Raphael is a daylight now. Alexander arranged it.”

“Looks like I missed a few things. Fine then. A few hours in the sunlight, but only with sunscreen and only on a sunbed. Maybe a hammock if you let someone help you in and out of it.”

“Bed then,” Raphael decided.

Catarina did what she could to heal the worst of the injuries while Magnus worked alongside her, following her lead on things. By the time they were finished, Alec was making his way back to them with Isabelle and Jace following behind him.

“Ready to go home?” he asked.

“Are we not needed here?” 

Isabelle shook her head. “We’ve got things handled here. Alec’s on family leave for now, so take some time to recover.”

“Thank the others for us.”

“We will,” she promised. “Now get home.”

 

*****

Raphael was stretched across the ridiculously comfortable daybed Magnus had placed for him on the balcony. He would have stayed out there all day, but he knew Alec would drag him back inside after so long. 

“You have to build your tolerance back up, or do you want to go around looking like a tomato at the party?”

It had been two weeks since Asmodeus was defeated, and Magnus had decided it was a perfect time to throw a party to celebrate their victory. He was inside using magic to expand their place until it was large enough to hold the mass amount of people that were coming, and Alec was helping by running through the lists of everything they would need and keeping an eye on his husband to prevent him from going too overboard. Magnus seemed more relaxed with his now immortal husband, and Alec exuded confidence in a rather flattering way. While they had had to have several serious discussions since Asmodeus’s death and Raphael’s permanent relocation into their apartment, the two seemed to be as in love as ever before, and in fact, they both seemed to have grown more confident in their relationship and also in their roles as parents. 

Raphael, who was also still adjusting to what was happening, had gotten out of doing anything at all for the party by playing up his recovery card. Though all three of them knew he had completely recovered, physically anyway. As for everything else, he had dreamless potions and two slightly overprotective fathers, who made sure he knew they were always there for him. The whole family thing was also becoming less strange each day especially with the realization that both Magnus and Alec somehow looked old enough to actually be mistaken for his dads by mundanes. 

“Raphael, come tell your Papa that we do not need five kinds of dessert buffets!”

Raphael pulled himself up with a groan. “Papa, listen to Dad. There’s no need for that many options. You’re just going to overwhelm everyone.”

He leaned on the door-frame and watched as Magnus put on his contemplative face and Alec did that thing with his eyebrows that meant he was waiting for someone to see his point. They were both ridiculous.

Magnus sighed. “You two, the loves of my life, just don’t understand the nuances of catering. I have a lot of different tastes to account for. We have to make sure no one feels excluded.”

“But Sweetheart,-” Alec began. 

“Dad, give it up. Papa’s got his mind set on this, and you know what that means.”

That had become normal too: the way Alec had gone from being Alec to Dad. It had been awkward the first time, but it had taken little time for it to feel normal. That was a story for another day though. 

“See! Just give in to me now, and it’ll save us time later,” Magnus teased and leaned forward for a kiss. Alec happily returned the gesture while Raphael pretended to gag. 

“Oh look. We really do have a teenager.” Magnus pulled Raphael to him and kissed him on the forehead. “And you are completely sure you are up for this? We’re not rushing things?”

“I’m never completely up for a party,” Raphael reminded him. “But I am as ready as I will ever be.”

“Ah yes, that’s right. You enjoy your silent brooding. Just like your dad.”

“Hey!” Alec exclaimed, but there was laughter in his tone. “Just because I prefer a quiet night in does not mean that I’m brooding.”

“No, the brooding part means you’re brooding, but no worries, my lovely, you do look gorgeous even while brooding.”

“And you look gorgeous at all times.”

“I’m going to go to my room to get ready before the two of you start making out.”

“The guests will start arriving in an hour. Feel free to be fashionably late if you wish. Dramatic entrances are key for a good party.”

“I’ll leave those for you this time.”

An hour later, Raphael ended up looking very much like their son, and as he stood between them during Magnus’s toast, he felt very much like their son. He felt proud to stand as part of their family, and he couldn’t imagine anywhere he would rather be.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for reading!  
> This last bit was hard to write as I didn't much want it to end. However, I've decided that there will be side stories to this verse. I hope you all will join me for those.


	14. Downworlder Dads Continued

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A note to the readers

This is not an official chapter, but it is a note to let all of you wonderful readers know that the series had been continued in Side Stories of Downworlder Dads. The first chapter is already published, and the second will be up this weekend. Also, in May, this work will be slightly edited, so if you're someone who likes to reread things, keep an eye out for those lovely changes. Thank you all again who read and enjoyed this fic! This has been so much fun to write, especially when I had your faithful comments to look forward to, and I look forward to adding more to this series.


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